AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.41 EPS

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The insurance provider reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.41, Briefing.com reports. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 20.11% and a net margin of 11.28%. The company had revenue of $1.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.49 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.23 earnings per share. AXIS Capital’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

AXIS Capital Price Performance

AXS traded down $0.44 on Friday, hitting $74.21. 104,008 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 603,635. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $71.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $65.74. The firm has a market cap of $6.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 0.89. AXIS Capital has a one year low of $52.90 and a one year high of $78.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 18th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 28th. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on AXS shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on AXIS Capital from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Bank of America increased their price objective on AXIS Capital from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $86.00 target price on shares of AXIS Capital in a research report on Monday, June 17th. StockNews.com raised AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Roth Mkm raised their price objective on AXIS Capital from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.43.

Insider Activity at AXIS Capital

In other AXIS Capital news, Director W Marston Becker bought 3,025 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $66.58 per share, with a total value of $201,404.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 21,821 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,452,842.18. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director W Marston Becker acquired 3,025 shares of AXIS Capital stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $66.58 per share, with a total value of $201,404.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 21,821 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,452,842.18. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael Millegan acquired 1,400 shares of AXIS Capital stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $71.49 per share, for a total transaction of $100,086.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 9,016 shares in the company, valued at $644,553.84. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 6,425 shares of company stock valued at $444,351. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.