Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) Downgraded to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Wednesday.

A number of other research firms have also commented on TRV. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $221.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $241.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $233.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Roth Mkm boosted their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $240.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $251.15.

Travelers Companies Stock Performance

TRV stock opened at $266.04 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.34. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $249.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $227.65. Travelers Companies has a fifty-two week low of $177.61 and a fifty-two week high of $269.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.40 billion, a PE ratio of 13.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.62.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The insurance provider reported $5.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.79 by $1.45. Travelers Companies had a net margin of 10.02% and a return on equity of 17.69%. The firm had revenue of $11.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.95 EPS. Travelers Companies’s revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Travelers Companies will post 18.83 EPS for the current year.

Travelers Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be issued a $1.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. Travelers Companies’s payout ratio is 21.54%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Alan D. Schnitzer sold 40,524 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.12, for a total value of $10,541,102.88. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 221,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $57,726,870.88. This represents a 15.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.55, for a total transaction of $781,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 250,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,237,551.20. This trade represents a 1.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 78,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,295,856. 1.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ledyard National Bank grew its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 2,067 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,807 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $423,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,499 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $351,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Willner & Heller LLC boosted its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Willner & Heller LLC now owns 1,146 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $268,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC boosted its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 39.1% during the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 160 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.