Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $242.95, but opened at $253.00. Travelers Companies shares last traded at $259.20, with a volume of 210,994 shares trading hands.

The insurance provider reported $5.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.79 by $1.45. Travelers Companies had a net margin of 8.37% and a return on equity of 15.90%. The company had revenue of $11.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.95 EPS. Travelers Companies’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Travelers Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $1.05 per share. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Travelers Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.55%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TRV has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Travelers Companies from $196.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. William Blair reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a report on Friday, June 28th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $200.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Travelers Companies from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $238.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Travelers Companies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $235.42.

Insider Buying and Selling at Travelers Companies

In other news, EVP Michael Frederick Klein sold 10,000 shares of Travelers Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.44, for a total transaction of $2,114,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,820,409.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Travelers Companies

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in TRV. Narus Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Travelers Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $213,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Travelers Companies by 36.8% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 16,631 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,894,000 after purchasing an additional 4,474 shares in the last quarter. Veracity Capital LLC increased its holdings in Travelers Companies by 6.8% during the third quarter. Veracity Capital LLC now owns 1,863 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $436,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. Harfst & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Travelers Companies by 27.3% in the third quarter. Harfst & Associates Inc. now owns 8,918 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,088,000 after buying an additional 1,910 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates lifted its holdings in Travelers Companies by 0.5% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 452,048 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $105,833,000 after buying an additional 2,046 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.45% of the company’s stock.

Travelers Companies Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market cap of $60.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.78, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.62. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $231.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $219.65.

Travelers Companies Company Profile

The Travelers Companies, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides a range of commercial and personal property, and casualty insurance products and services to businesses, government units, associations, and individuals in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Business Insurance, Bond & Specialty Insurance, and Personal Insurance.