Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK) Shares Sold by Empower Advisory Group LLC

Empower Advisory Group LLC cut its stake in shares of Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK) by 10.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 788 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 91 shares during the period. Empower Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Verisk Analytics were worth $211,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics in the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Verisk Analytics in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Verisk Analytics during the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics during the second quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics in the second quarter valued at about $46,000. 90.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verisk Analytics Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRSK opened at $280.80 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $271.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $266.05. The company has a market capitalization of $39.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.81, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.86. Verisk Analytics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $217.34 and a 12-month high of $291.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.36.

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.07. Verisk Analytics had a return on equity of 274.13% and a net margin of 32.65%. The business had revenue of $725.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $722.19 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.52 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Verisk Analytics, Inc. will post 6.63 EPS for the current year.

Verisk Analytics Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Verisk Analytics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Verisk Analytics from $285.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Verisk Analytics from $280.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Verisk Analytics from $263.00 to $276.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Evercore ISI reissued an “in-line” rating and set a $279.00 price objective on shares of Verisk Analytics in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Verisk Analytics from $275.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $285.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Elizabeth Mann sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.33, for a total value of $54,266.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 15,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,289,184.64. This trade represents a 1.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

About Verisk Analytics

Verisk Analytics, Inc provides data analytics and technology solutions to the insurance markets in the United States and internationally. It offers policy language, prospective loss costs, policy writing and rating rules, and various underwriting solutions for risk selection and segmentation, pricing, and workflow optimization; property- and auto- specific rating and underwriting information solutions that allows clients to understand, quantify, underwrite, mitigate, and avoid potential loss for risks; catastrophe modeling solutions, which enables companies to identify, quantify, and plan for the financial consequences of catastrophes for use by insurers, reinsurers, intermediaries, financial institutions, and governments.