PDT Partners LLC Takes Position in CNA Financial Corporation $CNA

PDT Partners LLC acquired a new stake in CNA Financial Corporation (NYSE:CNA) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 21,815 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,060,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CNA. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. bought a new stake in CNA Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Compass Financial Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of CNA Financial during the second quarter worth $36,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of CNA Financial during the second quarter worth $53,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of CNA Financial in the second quarter worth $55,000. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 142.7% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,223 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 719 shares during the last quarter. 98.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 22,656 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.09, for a total transaction of $1,202,807.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 68,032 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,611,818.88. This trade represents a 24.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Mark Steven James sold 8,273 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.15, for a total transaction of $439,709.95. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 26,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,405,604.90. This trade represents a 23.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings raised CNA Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Zacks Research raised CNA Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CNA Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

CNA Financial Stock Performance

CNA stock opened at $49.42 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $50.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.79. CNA Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $41.53 and a 1-year high of $55.71. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market cap of $13.37 billion, a PE ratio of 10.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.56 and a beta of 0.28.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The insurance provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.11. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 11.34% and a net margin of 8.16%.The company had revenue of $3.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.23 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that CNA Financial Corporation will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current year.

CNA Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. CNA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.20%.

About CNA Financial

CNA Financial Corporation is a leading U.S.-based commercial property and casualty insurance company offering a broad portfolio of risk management and insurance solutions. The company underwrites coverage for businesses of all sizes across a variety of industry sectors, including manufacturing, healthcare, energy, technology, construction and real estate. In addition to core property and casualty insurance, CNA delivers specialized products such as surety bonds, professional liability, environmental liability and commercial auto coverage.

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, CNA traces its origins to the founding of Continental Casualty Company in 1897.