QSV Equity Investors LLC Sells 2,704 Shares of RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI)

QSV Equity Investors LLC reduced its holdings in RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) by 21.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 9,767 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 2,704 shares during the period. RLI accounts for approximately 1.5% of QSV Equity Investors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. QSV Equity Investors LLC’s holdings in RLI were worth $1,610,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in RLI during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of RLI by 53.8% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 203 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of RLI by 76.9% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 230 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of RLI in the fourth quarter valued at about $56,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in RLI by 47.0% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 497 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. 77.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

RLI Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:RLI opened at $79.99 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.36 and a beta of 0.39. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $75.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $79.38. RLI Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $67.53 and a fifty-two week high of $91.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.38.

RLI (NYSE:RLI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.64). RLI had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 19.53%. As a group, analysts predict that RLI Corp. will post 3.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RLI Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This is a positive change from RLI’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. RLI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.00%.

Insider Transactions at RLI

In related news, Director Michael E. Angelina acquired 2,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $72.62 per share, for a total transaction of $159,764.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,707,586.68. The trade was a 10.32 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Craig W. Kliethermes bought 5,000 shares of RLI stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of $71.35 per share, for a total transaction of $356,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 139,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,931,206.50. This represents a 3.73 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 11,200 shares of company stock valued at $805,774 in the last three months. 5.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on RLI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on RLI from $100.50 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on RLI from $88.00 to $80.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group cut RLI from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $61.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Compass Point lowered their price target on shares of RLI from $185.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of RLI from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, RLI has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $82.80.

RLI Profile

RLI Corp., an insurance holding company, underwrites property and casualty insurance. Its Casualty segment provides commercial and personal coverage products; and general liability products, such as coverage for third-party liability of commercial insureds, including manufacturers, contractors, apartments, and mercantile.