Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twelve research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $124.00.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Axis Capital from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Axis Capital in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Mizuho set a $141.00 price objective on Axis Capital in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $122.00 target price on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Axis Capital from $124.00 to $121.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th.

Axis Capital Price Performance

Axis Capital stock opened at $103.29 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market cap of $7.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.34, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $103.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $100.24. Axis Capital has a 12-month low of $84.81 and a 12-month high of $110.34.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The insurance provider reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.33 billion. Axis Capital had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 18.72%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.38 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Axis Capital will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. Axis Capital’s dividend payout ratio is 14.21%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Axis Capital

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AXS. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 12.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 63,457 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,361,000 after purchasing an additional 7,023 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Axis Capital by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 205,553 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $20,605,000 after buying an additional 12,680 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in Axis Capital by 86.2% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 47,277 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,739,000 after buying an additional 21,892 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its position in Axis Capital by 42.1% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 10,417 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,044,000 after buying an additional 3,085 shares during the period. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 33.6% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,924 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $407,000 after acquiring an additional 987 shares in the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Axis Capital Company 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.