Forsta AP Fonden Grows Stake in Loews Co. (NYSE:L)

Forsta AP Fonden raised its position in Loews Co. (NYSE:L) by 56.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 71,000 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,600 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Loews were worth $6,013,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in L. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Loews during the third quarter worth $40,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Loews in the 3rd quarter valued at about $47,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Loews in the 3rd quarter valued at about $49,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Loews during the 3rd quarter worth about $129,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Loews by 240.5% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,360 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $176,000 after buying an additional 1,667 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.33% of the company’s stock.

Loews Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of L stock opened at $85.44 on Friday. Loews Co. has a 1-year low of $71.45 and a 1-year high of $87.45. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $84.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $81.48. The firm has a market cap of $18.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.35 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.34.

Loews (NYSE:L) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The insurance provider reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter. Loews had a net margin of 9.71% and a return on equity of 9.70%. The company had revenue of $4.47 billion for the quarter.

Loews Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th were given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.29%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 27th. Loews’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 3.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Loews from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th.

Insider Activity at Loews

In other Loews news, Director Charles M. Diker sold 1,146 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.83, for a total value of $99,507.18. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 19,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,728,437.98. This trade represents a 5.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Andrew H. Tisch sold 7,533 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.35, for a total transaction of $635,408.55. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,568,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $132,276,910.85. The trade was a 0.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 133,679 shares of company stock worth $11,134,916. Company insiders own 18.70% of the company’s stock.

About Loews

Loews Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance in the United States and internationally. The company offers specialty insurance products, such as management and professional liability, and other coverage products; surety and fidelity bonds; property insurance products that include standard and excess property, marine and boiler, and machinery coverages; and casualty insurance products, such as workers' compensation, general and product liability, and commercial auto, surplus, and umbrella coverages.