National Pension Service Decreases Stock Position in Loews Co. (NYSE:L)

National Pension Service reduced its position in Loews Co. (NYSE:L) by 91.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,296 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 336,386 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in Loews were worth $2,820,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Loews during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in Loews during the 4th quarter valued at $51,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Loews during the 3rd quarter valued at $49,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Loews by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,237 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in Loews by 24.4% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,440 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $122,000 after buying an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. 58.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Loews from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th.

Loews Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of L stock opened at $86.56 on Friday. Loews Co. has a 1 year low of $72.91 and a 1 year high of $88.29. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $84.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $82.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.34. The company has a market cap of $18.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.53 and a beta of 0.83.

Loews (NYSE:L) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Loews had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 8.04%.

Loews Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. Loews’s payout ratio is 3.91%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Charles M. Diker sold 1,146 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.83, for a total value of $99,507.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 19,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,728,437.98. This represents a 5.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Jonathan M. Tisch sold 3,691 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.89, for a total transaction of $320,710.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 62,370 shares of company stock valued at $5,309,627 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 18.70% of the company’s stock.

Loews Company Profile

Loews Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance in the United States and internationally. The company offers specialty insurance products, such as management and professional liability, and other coverage products; surety and fidelity bonds; property insurance products that include standard and excess property, marine and boiler, and machinery coverages; and casualty insurance products, such as workers' compensation, general and product liability, and commercial auto, surplus, and umbrella coverages.