Travelers Companies Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:TRV)

The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV) saw some unusual options trading on Monday. Traders bought 15,094 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 2,292% compared to the typical volume of 631 call options.

Insider Activity at Travelers Companies

In other news, EVP Jeffrey P. Klenk sold 6,414 shares of the business’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 directly owned 6,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,853,239.50. The trade was a 51.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Diane Kurtzman sold 2,867 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.45, for a total value of $869,991.15. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,298 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,607,678.10. This represents a 35.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 37,573 shares of company stock valued at $11,504,146. 1.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Travelers Companies

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Travelers Companies by 145.7% in the first quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 86 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Travelers Companies in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Travelers Companies in the first quarter worth $26,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Travelers Companies by 1,820.0% in the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 96 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Travelers Companies in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. 82.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on TRV shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Travelers Companies from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a research report on Friday, May 8th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Travelers Companies from $297.00 to $314.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Seaport Research Partners set a $322.00 price objective on Travelers Companies in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Travelers Companies from $340.00 to $342.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $309.07.

Travelers Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:TRV traded up $1.52 on Monday, reaching $305.98. 1,070,989 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,540,754. Travelers Companies has a fifty-two week low of $249.19 and a fifty-two week high of $313.12. The company’s 50 day moving average is $300.22 and its 200-day moving average is $294.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.07 billion, a PE ratio of 9.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.35.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $7.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.80 by $0.91. Travelers Companies had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 24.06%. The company had revenue of $11.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.91 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Travelers Companies will post 28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is a boost from Travelers Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 10th. Travelers Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.88%.

About Travelers Companies

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.