Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) Cut to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Tuesday.

Universal Insurance Price Performance

NYSE UVE opened at $21.58 on Tuesday. Universal Insurance has a one year low of $16.50 and a one year high of $23.39. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $20.16 and a 200 day moving average of $20.77. The company has a market capitalization of $610.41 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.77 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.51.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The insurance provider reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.16. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 4.82%. The company had revenue of $384.81 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $349.91 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Universal Insurance will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Universal Insurance Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.97%. This is an increase from Universal Insurance’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Universal Insurance news, Director Jon Springer sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.63, for a total value of $515,750.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 383,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,905,993.64. This trade represents a 6.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.51, for a total value of $1,025,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 985,320 shares in the company, valued at $20,208,913.20. The trade was a 4.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 115,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,424,450. Insiders own 17.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in UVE. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 240.1% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,881 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 1,328 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 55.6% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,171 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 776 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in Universal Insurance in the 4th quarter worth approximately $103,000. Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its holdings in Universal Insurance by 45,981.8% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 5,069 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $107,000 after purchasing an additional 5,058 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Universal Insurance in the 4th quarter worth approximately $118,000. 66.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.