Wall Street Zen Upgrades CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) to “Buy”

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Friday.

CNA has been the topic of a number of other reports. Zacks Research cut CNA Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of CNA Financial in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CNA Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.00.

CNA Financial Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:CNA opened at $46.27 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.68, a P/E/G ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.28. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $46.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $46.34. CNA Financial has a 52-week low of $43.29 and a 52-week high of $51.34.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The insurance provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $3.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.84 billion. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 12.78% and a net margin of 6.71%.During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CNA Financial will post 4.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at CNA Financial

In related news, Chairman Dino Robusto sold 6,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.62, for a total transaction of $297,625.00. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 661,838 shares in the company, valued at $31,516,725.56. This represents a 0.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,750 shares of company stock worth $873,875. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of CNA Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Alpine Bank Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 70.0% in the 3rd quarter. Alpine Bank Wealth Management now owns 556 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in CNA Financial by 6.8% during the second quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,957 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $184,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth increased its holdings in CNA Financial by 2.9% during the third quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 9,305 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $432,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in CNA Financial by 7.7% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,680 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $171,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the period. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in CNA Financial by 1.5% in the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 19,268 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $895,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.45% of the company’s stock.

About CNA Financial

CNA Financial Corporation is a leading U.S.-based commercial property and casualty insurance company offering a broad portfolio of risk management and insurance solutions. The company underwrites coverage for businesses of all sizes across a variety of industry sectors, including manufacturing, healthcare, energy, technology, construction and real estate. In addition to core property and casualty insurance, CNA delivers specialized products such as surety bonds, professional liability, environmental liability and commercial auto coverage.

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, CNA traces its origins to the founding of Continental Casualty Company in 1897.