Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) Raised to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Saturday.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on TRV. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Travelers Companies from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $217.00 price objective (down previously from $256.00) on shares of Travelers Companies in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $286.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Travelers Companies from $244.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $251.70.

Travelers Companies Stock Down 0.6 %

TRV stock opened at $239.87 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $252.73 and a 200 day moving average of $232.94. Travelers Companies has a 52 week low of $189.87 and a 52 week high of $269.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.46 billion, a PE ratio of 12.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.63.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The insurance provider reported $5.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.79 by $1.45. The business had revenue of $11.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.46 billion. Travelers Companies had a return on equity of 17.69% and a net margin of 10.02%. The company’s revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.95 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Travelers Companies will post 18.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Travelers Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be issued a $1.05 dividend. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Travelers Companies’s payout ratio is currently 21.54%.

Insider Activity at Travelers Companies

In related news, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 2,014 shares of Travelers Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $523,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 250,384 shares in the company, valued at $65,099,840. The trade was a 0.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Maria Olivo sold 10,410 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.80, for a total transaction of $2,725,338.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 111,162 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,102,211.60. This trade represents a 8.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 78,149 shares of company stock worth $20,295,856 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ledyard National Bank boosted its position in Travelers Companies by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 2,067 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Travelers Companies by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,807 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $423,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,499 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $351,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Willner & Heller LLC increased its holdings in shares of Travelers Companies by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Willner & Heller LLC now owns 1,146 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $268,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its holdings in Travelers Companies by 39.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 160 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. 82.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Travelers Companies Company Profile

The Travelers Companies, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides a range of commercial and personal property, and casualty insurance products and services to businesses, government units, associations, and individuals in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Business Insurance, Bond & Specialty Insurance, and Personal Insurance.