Arch Capital Group (NASDAQ:ACGL) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Arch Capital Group Ltd. (NASDAQ:ACGL) hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $106.64 and last traded at $106.72, with a volume of 88787 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $103.88.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 price objective (up from $114.00) on shares of Arch Capital Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Atlantic Securities set a $126.00 price target on shares of Arch Capital Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $102.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of Arch Capital Group in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Arch Capital Group from $104.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Arch Capital Group from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.82.

Arch Capital Group Trading Up 2.8%

The stock has a market cap of $37.31 billion, a PE ratio of 8.18, a P/E/G ratio of 5.15 and a beta of 0.31. The business’s fifty day moving average is $95.97 and its 200 day moving average is $95.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Arch Capital Group (NASDAQ:ACGL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The insurance provider reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter. Arch Capital Group had a net margin of 24.64% and a return on equity of 17.61%. The company had revenue of $4.52 billion for the quarter. As a group, analysts predict that Arch Capital Group Ltd. will post 9.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Daniel Joseph Houston purchased 5,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $94.08 per share, for a total transaction of $498,624.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 9,915 shares in the company, valued at approximately $932,803.20. The trade was a 114.84% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Brian S. Posner sold 3,000 shares of Arch Capital Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.66, for a total value of $58,980.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arch Capital Group

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Arch Capital Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $463,208,000. Morgan Stanley increased its position in Arch Capital Group by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,289,082 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $411,409,000 after buying an additional 33,132 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Arch Capital Group by 2.9% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,173,885 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $400,643,000 after acquiring an additional 117,929 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Arch Capital Group by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,949,978 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $282,962,000 after acquiring an additional 160,326 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in shares of Arch Capital Group by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,944,169 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $282,405,000 after acquiring an additional 121,090 shares during the last quarter. 89.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arch Capital Group Company Profile

Arch Capital Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: ACGL) is a Bermuda-based insurance and reinsurance holding company that underwrites a broad range of property and casualty, mortgage, and specialty risk products. The company operates through a group of underwriting subsidiaries and platforms to provide insurance, reinsurance and related risk solutions tailored to commercial, institutional and individual clients.

Arch’s product mix includes treaty and facultative reinsurance, primary casualty and property insurance, mortgage insurance and other specialty lines.