Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Universal Insurance from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Universal Insurance from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on Universal Insurance from $45.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $51.00.

Universal Insurance Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UVE opened at $48.47 on Friday. Universal Insurance has a twelve month low of $28.32 and a twelve month high of $50.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.06 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $44.80 and its 200-day moving average is $38.80.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The insurance provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.36. The firm had revenue of $444.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $601.67 million. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 38.15%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Universal Insurance will post 6.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, October 29th that permits the company to buy back $20 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the insurance provider to purchase up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Share repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Universal Insurance

In other news, Chairman Sean Downes sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.98, for a total transaction of $879,600.00. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 1,084,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,702,687.10. This represents a 1.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 15.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Universal Insurance

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Universal Insurance by 83.7% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 599 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares during the period. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in Universal Insurance in the 3rd quarter valued at $44,000. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 4,847.3% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,721 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 2,666 shares during the last quarter. Archer Investment Corp acquired a new position in Universal Insurance during the 1st quarter worth about $95,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in Universal Insurance by 170,750.0% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 3,417 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $117,000 after buying an additional 3,415 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 66.61% of the company’s stock.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc (NYSE: UVE) is an insurance holding company that provides property and casualty insurance through its subsidiaries. Its primary business is personal residential insurance, with products designed to protect homeowners and other residential property owners against risks such as wind, fire, theft and other covered losses.

The company’s offerings include homeowners, condominium unit owners, renters and dwelling fire insurance, along with related residential property coverage.