RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) Shares Sold by Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. reduced its stake in shares of RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 12,674 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 610 shares during the quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in RLI were worth $1,687,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in RLI. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in RLI by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 17,122 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,280,000 after purchasing an additional 689 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of RLI by 65.6% during the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 203,046 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $27,029,000 after buying an additional 80,451 shares during the last quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its position in RLI by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 4,577 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $609,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in RLI by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 145,443 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $19,361,000 after acquiring an additional 3,269 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in RLI by 39.1% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 13,837 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,842,000 after acquiring an additional 3,892 shares during the period. 77.89% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

RLI Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of RLI traded up $0.42 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $143.57. The company had a trading volume of 136,850 shares, compared to its average volume of 165,231. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $144.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $139.25. RLI Corp. has a 12-month low of $123.04 and a 12-month high of $149.20. The company has a market capitalization of $6.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.83 and a beta of 0.37.

RLI (NYSE:RLI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 22nd. The insurance provider reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $444.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $460.05 million. RLI had a return on equity of 17.24% and a net margin of 20.96%. RLI’s quarterly revenue was up 21.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.63 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that RLI Corp. will post 5.74 earnings per share for the current year.

RLI Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This is an increase from RLI’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 31st. RLI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on RLI. Compass Point boosted their target price on RLI from $158.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of RLI from $160.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of RLI in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of RLI from $148.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, RLI presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.25.

About RLI

RLI Corp., an insurance holding company, underwrites property and casualty insurance. Its Casualty segment provides commercial and personal coverage products; and general liability products, such as coverage for third-party liability of commercial insureds, including manufacturers, contractors, apartments, and mercantile.