Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) Rating Lowered to Buy at StockNews.com

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday.

Separately, TheStreet upgraded Universal Insurance from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th.

Universal Insurance Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UVE traded up $0.30 on Wednesday, hitting $19.98. The company had a trading volume of 161,192 shares, compared to its average volume of 194,613. The company has a market cap of $578.82 million, a PE ratio of 9.08 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The business has a 50 day moving average of $18.29 and a 200 day moving average of $16.37. Universal Insurance has a 52-week low of $11.15 and a 52-week high of $21.75.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $375.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $328.12 million. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 4.80% and a return on equity of 18.14%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Universal Insurance will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Insurance

In other Universal Insurance news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.53, for a total transaction of $390,600.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,191,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,267,846.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 17.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Universal Insurance

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 66,362 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $703,000 after acquiring an additional 877 shares during the period. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can raised its stake in Universal Insurance by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 25,286 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $350,000 after purchasing an additional 916 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 2.4% during the first quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 47,479 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $865,000 after buying an additional 1,113 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 4.1% in the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 29,313 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $532,000 after buying an additional 1,158 shares during the period. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in Universal Insurance by 4.4% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 28,576 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $281,000 after acquiring an additional 1,213 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.61% of the company’s stock.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.