Synergy Asset Management LLC Sells 48,623 Shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Synergy Asset Management LLC decreased its position in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 18.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 215,737 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 48,623 shares during the quarter. Axis Capital accounts for 2.6% of Synergy Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Synergy Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.27% of Axis Capital worth $22,398,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Axis Capital in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in Axis Capital by 1,542.9% in the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 575 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Axis Capital by 34.0% in the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in Axis Capital by 36.9% in the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,184 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $119,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Axis Capital by 34.3% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,628 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $163,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Axis Capital

In other Axis Capital news, Director Henry B. Smith sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.67, for a total value of $345,345.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 47,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,666,597.65. This represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel J. Draper sold 4,305 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.57, for a total value of $420,038.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,269 shares in the company, valued at $1,587,366.33. This trade represents a 20.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,205 shares of company stock worth $1,188,048 in the last ninety days. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXS has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $119.00 price objective (up previously from $115.00) on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Axis Capital from $104.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Axis Capital from $118.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Axis Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Axis Capital currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $111.43.

Axis Capital Stock Performance

NYSE AXS opened at $93.86 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $96.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $97.99. The company has a market cap of $7.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.69. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a fifty-two week low of $77.21 and a fifty-two week high of $107.19.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.29 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.68 billion. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 18.77% and a net margin of 14.30%.Axis Capital’s quarterly revenue was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.93 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. Axis Capital’s dividend payout ratio is 16.92%.

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.