Skyward Specialty Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SKWD) Stock Price Up 8.7% After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Skyward Specialty Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKWD)’s stock price traded up 8.7% on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $58.16 and last traded at $58.23. 293,832 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 23% from the average session volume of 381,702 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.57.

The company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.12. Skyward Specialty Insurance Group had a return on equity of 16.39% and a net margin of 12.24%. The business had revenue of $328.53 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $310.94 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.75 earnings per share.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SKWD has been the subject of several recent research reports. JMP Securities boosted their price target on Skyward Specialty Insurance Group from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Wolfe Research restated a “peer perform” rating on shares of Skyward Specialty Insurance Group in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Skyward Specialty Insurance Group from $54.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Skyward Specialty Insurance Group from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on Skyward Specialty Insurance Group in a report on Monday, January 13th. They set a “hold” rating and a $43.00 target price on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.63.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider John A. Burkhart III sold 4,832 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.24, for a total transaction of $242,759.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 17,655 shares in the company, valued at approximately $886,987.20. This represents a 21.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gena L. Ashe sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.62, for a total value of $50,620.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 734 shares in the company, valued at $37,155.08. This trade represents a 57.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 12,132 shares of company stock valued at $620,476. 8.01% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Skyward Specialty Insurance Group

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SKWD. Barclays PLC increased its position in Skyward Specialty Insurance Group by 277.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 64,032 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,608,000 after acquiring an additional 47,081 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Skyward Specialty Insurance Group by 16.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,117,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,506,000 after buying an additional 158,679 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Skyward Specialty Insurance Group by 32.9% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 86,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,515,000 after buying an additional 21,346 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Skyward Specialty Insurance Group by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 64,321 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,248,000 after acquiring an additional 1,523 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Skyward Specialty Insurance Group in the 4th quarter valued at $61,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.83% of the company’s stock.

Skyward Specialty Insurance Group Trading Up 9.4 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.88, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.63. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $51.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $49.66.

About Skyward Specialty Insurance Group

Skyward Specialty Insurance Group, Inc, an insurance holding company, underwrites commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States. It offers general liability, excess liability, professional liability, commercial auto, group accident and health, property, surety, and workers' compensation insurance products.