Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $23.71 Million Stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 16.5% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 247,538 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 48,833 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Axis Capital were worth $23,714,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AXS. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in Axis Capital in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Smithfield Trust Co raised its position in shares of Axis Capital by 94.0% in the 2nd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 293 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Axis Capital in the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Axis Capital in the 2nd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 145.1% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 581 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AXS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Axis Capital from $124.00 to $121.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Axis Capital from $121.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Axis Capital from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $110.00 target price on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Axis Capital presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $124.00.

Axis Capital Stock Down 0.0%

Axis Capital stock opened at $106.56 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.63. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $103.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $99.18. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 1-year low of $84.81 and a 1-year high of $110.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The insurance provider reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.28. Axis Capital had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 18.90%. The company had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.38 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 17.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 31st. Axis Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.21%.

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.