Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Trims Stake in The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV) by 6.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,611,301 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 104,936 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned about 0.72% of Travelers Companies worth $467,374,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,109,933 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $6,413,207,000 after buying an additional 110,311 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 1.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,746,231 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,162,917,000 after buying an additional 119,481 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Travelers Companies during the fourth quarter valued at about $723,339,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 22.8% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,785,288 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $496,872,000 after buying an additional 331,170 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG increased its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,774,756 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $514,786,000 after buying an additional 89,159 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.45% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TRV has been the topic of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $297.00 to $314.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Brean Capital initiated coverage on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Travelers Companies from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Travelers Companies from $340.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $311.47.

Insider Transactions at Travelers Companies

In other news, EVP Michael Frederick Klein sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.65, for a total value of $3,076,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 45,125 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,882,706.25. This represents a 18.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jeffrey P. Klenk sold 6,414 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.06, for a total transaction of $1,956,654.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,853,239.50. This represents a 51.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 37,573 shares of company stock valued at $11,504,146. 1.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Travelers Companies Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE TRV opened at $293.50 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $298.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $293.93. The company has a market cap of $62.41 billion, a PE ratio of 8.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.48. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $249.19 and a 52-week high of $313.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.35.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $7.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.80 by $0.91. The firm had revenue of $11.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.11 billion. Travelers Companies had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 24.06%. The business’s revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.91 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. This is a boost from Travelers Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 10th. Travelers Companies’s payout ratio is currently 14.88%.

Travelers Companies 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.