North Dakota State Investment Board Buys Shares of 7,754 The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV

North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new stake in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 7,754 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,249,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of TRV. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Travelers Companies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Navalign LLC purchased a new position in shares of Travelers Companies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. eCIO Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Travelers Companies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Optima Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Travelers Companies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 82.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Travelers Companies Stock Up 2.1%

Travelers Companies stock opened at $305.91 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $249.19 and a 1-year high of $313.12. The company has a market cap of $65.05 billion, a PE ratio of 9.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.50. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $299.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $291.98.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $7.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.80 by $0.91. Travelers Companies had a return on equity of 24.06% and a net margin of 15.54%.The firm had revenue of $11.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.91 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 28.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is a boost from Travelers Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 10th. Travelers Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.09%.

Travelers Companies announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, January 21st that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the insurance provider to purchase up to 8.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on TRV. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Travelers Companies from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Travelers Companies from $315.00 to $304.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Brean Capital initiated coverage on Travelers Companies in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $309.13.

Insider Transactions at Travelers Companies

In related news, insider Avrohom J. Kess sold 6,735 shares of Travelers Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.78, for a total value of $2,079,633.30. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 48,737 shares in the company, valued at $15,049,010.86. The trade was a 12.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Michael Frederick Klein sold 10,000 shares of Travelers Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.77, for a total value of $3,037,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 45,125 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,707,621.25. This trade represents a 18.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 27,573 shares of company stock valued at $8,427,646. 1.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Travelers Companies Company Profile

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.