Barclays Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) Stock

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) had its target price increased by equities research analysts at Barclays from $312.00 to $331.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the insurance provider’s stock. Barclays‘s price objective points to a potential upside of 10.42% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Roth Mkm raised their target price on Travelers Companies from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Brean Capital started coverage on Travelers Companies in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Zacks Research cut Travelers Companies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Travelers Companies from $302.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Travelers Companies from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $308.14.

Travelers Companies Price Performance

TRV stock traded up $4.72 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $299.77. 486,880 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,600,417. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $297.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $286.79. Travelers Companies has a one year low of $230.47 and a one year high of $313.12. The company has a market cap of $64.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The insurance provider reported $11.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.34 by $2.79. Travelers Companies had a return on equity of 20.70% and a net margin of 12.88%.The business had revenue of $12.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $9.15 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Travelers Companies will post 17.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Travelers Companies announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, January 21st that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the insurance provider to purchase up to 8.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Alan D. Schnitzer sold 55,733 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.70, for a total value of $16,424,515.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 260,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $76,718,956.30. This represents a 17.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Jeffrey P. Klenk sold 16,712 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.77, for a total transaction of $4,675,516.24. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,699,602.75. This represents a 73.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 92,845 shares of company stock worth $27,239,631. Insiders own 1.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Travelers Companies

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TRV. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Travelers Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Travelers Companies by 1,820.0% during the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 96 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Travelers Companies in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Travelers Companies by 134.1% in the third quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 96 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clayton Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Travelers Companies in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.45% of the company’s stock.

Travelers Companies Company Profile

The Travelers Companies, Inc (NYSE: TRV) is a leading provider of property and casualty insurance products and services. The company underwrites a broad range of commercial and personal insurance lines, offering coverage designed to protect individuals, small and midsize businesses, and large corporate clients against property loss, liability, and other operational risks. Travelers is known for combining underwriting, claims management and risk control services to help clients prevent losses and recover when incidents occur.

On the commercial side, Travelers writes primary and specialty coverages including property, general liability, commercial auto, workers’ compensation, professional and management liability, surety and inland marine.