Bridgewater Associates LP Increases Position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Bridgewater Associates LP boosted its position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 92.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 80,123 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 38,577 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP owned about 0.10% of AXIS Capital worth $6,379,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AXS. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 3.9% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,075,087 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $287,909,000 after purchasing an additional 152,914 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in AXIS Capital by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,583,700 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $182,538,000 after buying an additional 213,559 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,625,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $129,371,000 after acquiring an additional 318,784 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 12.5% in the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,417,464 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $100,144,000 after acquiring an additional 157,110 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in AXIS Capital by 2.4% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,394,491 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $111,015,000 after purchasing an additional 33,241 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AXIS Capital Price Performance

AXS stock opened at $93.04 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $76.45. The firm has a market cap of $7.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 1 year low of $53.49 and a 1 year high of $94.39.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.16. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 10.82% and a return on equity of 19.24%. The company had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.34 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.89%. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AXS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $81.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on AXIS Capital from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group raised their price objective on AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.14.

AXIS Capital Profile

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides various specialty insurance and reinsurance products in Bermuda, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Insurance segment offers professional insurance products that cover directors' and officers' liability, errors and omissions, employment practices, fiduciary, crime, professional indemnity, medical malpractice, and other financial insurance related coverages for commercial enterprises, financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, and other professional service providers; and property insurance products for commercial buildings, residential premises, construction projects, property in transit, onshore renewable energy installations, and physical damage and business interruption following an act of terrorism.