Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Acquires 27,515 Shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 22.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 152,050 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 27,515 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Axis Capital were worth $15,853,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in Axis Capital by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,222,932 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $117,157,000 after buying an additional 6,571 shares during the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 63.2% in the third quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 352,050 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $33,726,000 after acquiring an additional 136,313 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 30.3% in the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 970,411 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $92,965,000 after acquiring an additional 225,569 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in shares of Axis Capital during the third quarter worth approximately $1,118,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 22.8% during the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 110,364 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $10,573,000 after purchasing an additional 20,484 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on AXS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $122.00 price objective on shares of Axis Capital in a report on Friday, January 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Axis Capital from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Axis Capital from $121.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on Axis Capital from $119.00 to $115.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Axis Capital presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.00.

Axis Capital Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of AXS stock opened at $101.74 on Friday. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a fifty-two week low of $84.81 and a fifty-two week high of $110.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $102.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $100.67. The company has a market cap of $7.53 billion, a PE ratio of 8.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.63.

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

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

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

About Axis Capital

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.