Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 313,000 shares, a decline of 23.5% from the October 31st total of 409,300 shares. Approximately 1.2% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 205,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.5 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Universal Insurance from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 10th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Insurance

In other news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.47, for a total transaction of $449,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 1,082,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,318,427.14. This represents a 1.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 55,064 shares of company stock valued at $1,191,937. 17.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Universal Insurance

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 424.4% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,395 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,129 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in Universal Insurance by 240.1% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,881 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 1,328 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Universal Insurance by 40.1% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,524 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 723 shares during the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in Universal Insurance in the third quarter worth about $202,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new position in Universal Insurance in the third quarter valued at about $206,000. 66.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Universal Insurance Trading Down 0.7 %

UVE traded down $0.16 during trading on Friday, reaching $22.63. 69,317 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 133,123. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Universal Insurance has a one year low of $15.63 and a one year high of $23.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $20.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $20.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $640.20 million, a PE ratio of 9.20 and a beta of 0.90.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The insurance provider reported ($0.73) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.03) by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $387.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $341.98 million. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 4.82% and a return on equity of 15.43%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($0.16) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Universal Insurance will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.02%.

About Universal Insurance

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.