Welch & Forbes LLC Decreases Stake in Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB)

Welch & Forbes LLC lessened its stake in shares of Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 415,828 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,096 shares during the quarter. Chubb comprises 1.4% of Welch & Forbes LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Welch & Forbes LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Chubb worth $93,977,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ZRC Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Chubb during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new position in shares of Chubb during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Chubb during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of Chubb by 39.6% during the third quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 208 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Chubb by 87.0% during the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 215 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.81% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CB. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Chubb from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. HSBC restated a “hold” rating and issued a $270.00 target price (down previously from $275.00) on shares of Chubb in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Chubb from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Chubb from $228.00 to $254.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Chubb from $275.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $266.89.

Insider Transactions at Chubb

In other news, EVP Timothy Alan Boroughs sold 14,303 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $258.78, for a total transaction of $3,701,330.34. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 35,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,228,612.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Joseph F. Wayland sold 26,946 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.02, for a total transaction of $6,925,660.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 95,252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,481,669.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Timothy Alan Boroughs sold 14,303 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $258.78, for a total transaction of $3,701,330.34. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 35,662 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,228,612.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 108,863 shares of company stock valued at $28,007,307 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Chubb Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CB traded up $3.51 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $252.05. 756,406 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,732,073. The company has a market cap of $102.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.29. Chubb Limited has a one year low of $183.71 and a one year high of $260.58. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $251.90 and a 200 day moving average of $237.45.

Chubb (NYSE:CB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $5.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.29 by $0.12. Chubb had a return on equity of 16.29% and a net margin of 17.99%. The company had revenue of $12.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.41 earnings per share. Chubb’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Chubb Limited will post 21.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chubb Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.36%. Chubb’s payout ratio is currently 15.27%.

About Chubb

Chubb Limited provides insurance and reinsurance products worldwide. The company's North America Commercial P&C Insurance segment offers commercial property, casualty, workers' compensation, package policies, risk management, financial lines, marine, construction, environmental, medical risk, cyber risk, surety, and casualty; and group accident and health insurance to large, middle market, and small commercial businesses.