Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Increases Stock Holdings in Loews Co. (NYSE:L)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in Loews Co. (NYSE:L) by 24.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,327 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 6,885 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Loews were worth $2,992,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in L. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Loews during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Loews during the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Loews during the 3rd quarter worth about $49,000. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in Loews during the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Loews by 117.2% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 832 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 449 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com cut Loews from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th.

Loews Stock Up 2.1 %

L opened at $86.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.53 and a beta of 0.80. The business has a 50-day moving average of $84.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $82.86. Loews Co. has a 12 month low of $72.91 and a 12 month high of $88.29.

Loews (NYSE:L) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter. Loews had a return on equity of 8.04% and a net margin of 8.08%.

Loews Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a $0.0625 dividend. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. Loews’s dividend payout ratio is currently 3.91%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Andrew H. Tisch sold 7,533 shares of Loews stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.35, for a total value of $635,408.55. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,568,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $132,276,910.85. The trade was a 0.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Jonathan M. Tisch sold 3,691 shares of Loews stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.89, for a total value of $320,710.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 158,860 shares of company stock valued at $13,486,463 in the last three months. Corporate 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.