CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Tuesday morning.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on CNA Financial from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th.

CNA Financial Stock Up 1.7 %

CNA opened at $49.42 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $48.48 and a 200-day moving average of $49.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.26 and a quick ratio of 0.26. CNA Financial has a fifty-two week low of $42.33 and a fifty-two week high of $52.36. The company has a market capitalization of $13.38 billion, a PE ratio of 10.30 and a beta of 0.66.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.14. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 13.30% and a net margin of 9.26%. Equities research analysts forecast that CNA Financial will post 4.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a $0.46 dividend. This is an increase from CNA Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.72%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. CNA Financial’s payout ratio is currently 52.27%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its position in CNA Financial by 366.7% in the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,401,539 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $68,591,000 after buying an additional 1,101,217 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in CNA Financial by 66.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,177,110 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $56,937,000 after buying an additional 468,058 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC increased its position in CNA Financial by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 1,012,492 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $49,551,000 after buying an additional 5,539 shares during the period. CORDA Investment Management LLC. increased its position in CNA Financial by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. CORDA Investment Management LLC. now owns 661,532 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $31,998,000 after buying an additional 11,597 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in CNA Financial by 36.5% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 363,389 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $17,577,000 after buying an additional 97,180 shares during the period. 98.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About CNA Financial

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.