Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 437,827 Shares of Old Republic International Co. (NYSE:ORI)

Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its stake in Old Republic International Co. (NYSE:ORI) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,392,941 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 437,827 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 10.01% of Old Republic International worth $918,971,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ORI. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Old Republic International in the 4th quarter valued at about $67,054,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in Old Republic International by 162.4% in the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 610,150 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $21,612,000 after acquiring an additional 377,605 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Old Republic International during the third quarter valued at approximately $7,965,000. Orca Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Old Republic International during the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,209,000. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Old Republic International in the 4th quarter worth $5,409,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Old Republic International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th.

Old Republic International Price Performance

ORI stock opened at $38.98 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.62. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $37.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.41. The company has a market capitalization of $9.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.82 and a beta of 0.83. Old Republic International Co. has a 52-week low of $28.59 and a 52-week high of $39.31.

Old Republic International (NYSE:ORI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.19. Old Republic International had a return on equity of 20.32% and a net margin of 10.36%. Research analysts expect that Old Republic International Co. will post 3.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Old Republic International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. This is an increase from Old Republic International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Old Republic International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.11%.

Insider Activity at Old Republic International

In other news, SVP Carolyn Monroe sold 9,188 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.35, for a total transaction of $333,983.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 33,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,219,760.60. This trade represents a 21.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Thomas Dare sold 27,457 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.50, for a total transaction of $1,002,180.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 46,556 shares in the company, valued at $1,699,294. This trade represents a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 43,039 shares of company stock valued at $1,580,733 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

About Old Republic International

Old Republic International Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the insurance underwriting and related services business primarily in the United States and Canada. It operates through three segments: General Insurance, Title Insurance, and Republic Financial Indemnity Group Run-off Business.