State of Michigan Retirement System Trims Stock Position in Old Republic International Co. (NYSE:ORI)

State of Michigan Retirement System cut its position in shares of Old Republic International Co. (NYSE:ORI) by 2.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 55,278 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 1,200 shares during the quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System’s holdings in Old Republic International were worth $2,001,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in Old Republic International by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 8,707 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $315,000 after purchasing an additional 583 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in Old Republic International during the fourth quarter worth about $362,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Old Republic International during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in shares of Old Republic International by 32.4% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,041 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY raised its stake in shares of Old Republic International by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY now owns 7,866 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $285,000 after acquiring an additional 671 shares during the period. 70.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Old Republic International Price Performance

Old Republic International stock opened at $37.28 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.18. The company has a market capitalization of $9.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.17 and a beta of 0.83. Old Republic International Co. has a 1 year low of $28.59 and a 1 year high of $39.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.62.

Old Republic International (NYSE:ORI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.19. Old Republic International had a net margin of 10.36% and a return on equity of 20.32%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Old Republic International Co. will post 3.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Old Republic International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.11%. This is a boost from Old Republic International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Old Republic International’s payout ratio is 44.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Old Republic International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th.

Insider Activity at Old Republic International

In related news, CEO Craig R. Smiddy sold 5,296 shares of Old Republic International stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.60, for a total value of $204,425.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 138,222 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,335,369.20. The trade was a 3.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Carolyn Monroe sold 9,188 shares of Old Republic International stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.35, for a total transaction of $333,983.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 33,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,219,760.60. This trade represents a 21.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 15,582 shares of company stock worth $578,552. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Old Republic International Company Profile

Old Republic International Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the insurance underwriting and related services business primarily in the United States and Canada. It operates through three segments: General Insurance, Title Insurance, and Republic Financial Indemnity Group Run-off Business.