Analysts Set RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) Price Target at $63.20

RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) has earned an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the seven ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $63.20.

RLI has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen raised RLI from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $74.00 price target (up from $70.00) on shares of RLI in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of RLI from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $53.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of RLI from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $57.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, UBS Group set a $74.00 price target on RLI in a report on Tuesday, July 28th.

RLI Stock Down 0.1%

RLI stock opened at $59.34 on Wednesday. RLI has a 52-week low of $47.26 and a 52-week high of $67.12. The stock has a market cap of $5.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.47 and a beta of 0.38. The business has a fifty day moving average of $62.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $58.18.

RLI (NYSE:RLI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $575.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $568.70 million. RLI had a return on equity of 17.61% and a net margin of 22.22%.The firm’s revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.82 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that RLI will post 2.88 EPS for the current year.

RLI Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st were issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 31st. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. RLI’s dividend payout ratio is 15.13%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On RLI

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RLI. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of RLI by 33.1% in the 1st quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,579,955 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $147,161,000 after purchasing an additional 641,769 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of RLI by 26.7% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 100,297 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,721,000 after buying an additional 21,136 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in RLI by 37.0% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 282,656 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $16,123,000 after buying an additional 76,413 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in RLI by 233.6% in the 1st quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 374,447 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $21,358,000 after acquiring an additional 262,218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP grew its stake in RLI by 18.4% during the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 586,402 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $37,518,000 after acquiring an additional 91,073 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.89% of the company’s stock.

About RLI

RLI Corp. is a specialty property and casualty insurance company headquartered in Peoria, Illinois. Through its subsidiaries, the company underwrites a broad range of insurance products for commercial and personal customers, with an emphasis on specialized risks that may not be fully addressed by standard insurance carriers.

RLI’s products include commercial property and casualty coverage, transportation and marine insurance, surety bonds, workers’ compensation, professional liability, and personal umbrella insurance.