AlphaQuest LLC Sells 10,637 Shares of Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE)

AlphaQuest LLC cut its stake in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) by 44.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,196 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 10,637 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Universal Insurance were worth $278,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UVE. Quarry LP boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 55.6% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,171 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 776 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 240.1% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,881 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 1,328 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Universal Insurance by 9.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 24,415 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $514,000 after acquiring an additional 2,160 shares during the last quarter. Rockwood Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Universal Insurance by 48.4% during the 4th quarter. Rockwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,373 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $337,000 after acquiring an additional 5,337 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new position in Universal Insurance in the 3rd quarter worth about $202,000. 66.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com cut Universal Insurance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Jon Springer sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.63, for a total value of $515,750.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 383,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,905,993.64. The trade was a 6.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.51, for a total value of $1,025,500.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 985,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,208,913.20. This represents a 4.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 115,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,424,450. 17.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Universal Insurance Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UVE opened at $21.84 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $613.62 million, a PE ratio of 8.88 and a beta of 0.84. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $16.50 and a 52 week high of $23.39. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $20.24 and its 200-day moving average is $20.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.51.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The insurance provider reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.16. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 4.82%. The firm had revenue of $384.81 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $349.91 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Insurance Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This is a positive change from Universal Insurance’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.16%.

Universal Insurance 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.