Travelers Companies’ (TRV) “Sector Perform” Rating Reaffirmed at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed their sector perform rating on shares of Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $225.00 price objective on the insurance provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on TRV. JMP Securities reaffirmed a market perform rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $241.00 to $231.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. HSBC raised their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $218.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Travelers Companies from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Sunday, July 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $222.00 to $219.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $220.94.

Travelers Companies Trading Up 0.7 %

TRV stock opened at $209.20 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $209.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $214.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Travelers Companies has a 52-week low of $157.33 and a 52-week high of $232.75. The firm has a market cap of $47.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.54, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.61.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The insurance provider reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.23 by ($0.72). Travelers Companies had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 8.37%. The firm had revenue of $11.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.06 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Travelers Companies will post 17.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be given a dividend of $1.05 per share. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 10th. Travelers Companies’s payout ratio is presently 31.20%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Jeffrey P. Klenk sold 3,635 shares of Travelers Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.68, for a total transaction of $776,726.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,298,106. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Travelers Companies

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in Travelers Companies by 29.0% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 4,614 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $879,000 after purchasing an additional 1,037 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Travelers Companies by 38.7% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 342,288 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $78,689,000 after purchasing an additional 95,451 shares during the period. Focus Financial Network Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in Travelers Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,973,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Travelers Companies by 100.9% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 50,910 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $9,698,000 after purchasing an additional 25,575 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia raised its position in Travelers Companies by 552.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 166,059 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,631,000 after purchasing an additional 140,622 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.45% of the company’s stock.

About Travelers Companies

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.