AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Receives $98.71 Average Price Target from Analysts

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the seven brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $98.71.

AXS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of AXIS Capital from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $78.00 to $89.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group increased their price target on AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in AXIS Capital by 52.5% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,060 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $711,000 after buying an additional 3,463 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AXIS Capital by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 5,212 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $368,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the period. Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 9.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC now owns 22,590 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,596,000 after purchasing an additional 1,860 shares in the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 58.3% during the 2nd quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 8,281 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $610,000 after purchasing an additional 3,049 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in AXIS Capital during the second quarter worth approximately $10,445,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

AXIS Capital Stock Performance

NYSE AXS opened at $88.20 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $85.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $78.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.23, a P/E/G ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. AXIS Capital has a 1 year low of $53.49 and a 1 year high of $94.89.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.16. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 10.82%. 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 company posted $2.34 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that AXIS Capital will post 10.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.41%.

About AXIS Capital

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.