Paragon Capital Management Inc. Takes Position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Paragon Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 20,001 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,772,000. AXIS Capital comprises approximately 1.4% of Paragon Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in AXIS Capital by 48.6% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 371,557 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,070,000 after acquiring an additional 121,437 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new position in AXIS Capital during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $638,000. Verition Fund Management LLC bought a new position in AXIS Capital during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $453,000. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in AXIS Capital during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $507,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in 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 last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on AXS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on AXIS Capital from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. TD Cowen lifted 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. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, January 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 target price for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AXIS Capital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $99.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AXIS Capital news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,234,636 shares of AXIS Capital stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total value of $199,999,922.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,543,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $406,613,715. This trade represents a 32.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

AXIS Capital Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:AXS opened at $90.37 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $90.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.32, a PEG ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.95. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $56.93 and a 12-month high of $94.89. 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 (NYSE:AXS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 18.16%. On average, research analysts anticipate that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. AXIS Capital’s payout ratio is 14.25%.

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.