Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 143,972 Shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV) by 85.7% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 23,999 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 143,972 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Travelers Companies were worth $6,701,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Travelers Companies by 1,820.0% in the 2nd quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 96 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Travelers Companies in the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Travelers Companies by 134.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 96 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Travelers Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Travelers Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors own 82.45% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Travelers Companies news, EVP Maria Olivo sold 10,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.75, for a total transaction of $3,127,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 117,596 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,366,997. The trade was a 8.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael Frederick Klein sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.18, for a total value of $3,011,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 33,638 shares in the company, valued at $10,131,092.84. This represents a 22.92% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 92,845 shares of company stock worth $27,239,631 in the last three months. 1.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TRV has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings raised Travelers Companies from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Zacks Research lowered Travelers Companies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Evercore boosted their target price on Travelers Companies from $309.00 to $317.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on Travelers Companies from $316.00 to $319.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $302.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Travelers Companies presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $304.33.

Travelers Companies Stock Performance

NYSE TRV opened at $303.02 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $291.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $283.63. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $230.43 and a 1 year high of $313.12.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 21st. The insurance provider reported $11.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.34 by $2.79. The company had revenue of $12.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.13 billion. Travelers Companies had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 20.70%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $9.15 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 17.02 EPS for the current year.

Travelers Companies announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 21st that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the insurance provider to buy up to 8.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Travelers Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Travelers Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.98%.

About Travelers Companies

The Travelers Companies, Inc (NYSE: TRV) is a leading provider of property and casualty insurance products and services. The company underwrites a broad range of commercial and personal insurance lines, offering coverage designed to protect individuals, small and midsize businesses, and large corporate clients against property loss, liability, and other operational risks. Travelers is known for combining underwriting, claims management and risk control services to help clients prevent losses and recover when incidents occur.

On the commercial side, Travelers writes primary and specialty coverages including property, general liability, commercial auto, workers’ compensation, professional and management liability, surety and inland marine.