LSV Asset Management Sells 47,802 Shares of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc $UVE

LSV Asset Management trimmed its stake in Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE) by 15.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 253,300 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 47,802 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned approximately 0.90% of Universal Insurance worth $8,562,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,006,000. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 492.4% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,796 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 2,324 shares during the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Centric Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $257,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance during the 4th quarter worth approximately $54,000. 66.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Insurance

In other news, CAO Kimberly D. Campos sold 879 shares of Universal Insurance stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.84, for a total value of $29,745.36. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $251,160.48. This trade represents a 10.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of Universal Insurance stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.60, for a total value of $692,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 1,206,788 shares in the company, valued at $41,754,864.80. This represents a 1.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 60,879 shares of company stock worth $2,290,145 over the last 90 days. 15.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Zacks Research raised Universal Insurance from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Universal Insurance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.00.

Universal Insurance Trading Up 0.1%

UVE opened at $39.01 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $36.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.83. The company has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.78 and a beta of 0.77. Universal Insurance Holdings Inc has a 52 week low of $21.96 and a 52 week high of $41.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $2.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $398.16 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $481.09 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 37.51% and a net margin of 12.22%. Analysts forecast that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Insurance Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.48%.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc (NYSE: UVE) is a property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. The company underwrites homeowners and other residential property insurance products to protect against natural catastrophes such as hurricanes, windstorms and fires. It distributes policies primarily through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering coverage for primary residences, secondary homes, condominiums, vacant dwellings and rental properties across its service territory.

In addition to personal lines, Universal provides commercial property and casualty insurance tailored to small businesses and institutional clients.