Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) Hits New 1-Year High Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday after Zacks Research upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating. The stock traded as high as $36.31 and last traded at $36.0950, with a volume of 245848 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $35.17.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on UVE. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Universal Insurance from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Universal Insurance from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.00.

Insider Transactions at Universal Insurance

In other Universal Insurance news, Director Richard D. Peterson sold 1,855 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.61, for a total value of $62,346.55. Following the sale, the director owned 8,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $279,601.59. This trade represents a 18.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.82, for a total value of $676,400.00. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 1,243,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,055,575.84. This trade represents a 1.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 46,855 shares of company stock valued at $1,590,497. Company insiders own 17.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Universal Insurance in the fourth quarter valued at $495,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 133,255 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,504,000 after buying an additional 8,176 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance in the fourth quarter valued at about $665,000. VARCOV Co. bought a new position in shares of Universal Insurance during the fourth quarter worth about $421,000. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL acquired a new position in shares of Universal Insurance in the fourth quarter worth approximately $888,000. Institutional investors own 66.61% of the company’s stock.

Universal Insurance Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a fifty day moving average of $31.57 and a 200 day moving average of $30.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.87. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 37.28% and a net margin of 11.41%.The firm had revenue of $403.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $372.99 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Insurance Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. Universal Insurance’s payout ratio is 10.14%.

About Universal Insurance

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.