Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Takes Position in Old Republic International Co. (NYSE:ORI)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Old Republic International Co. (NYSE:ORI) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 6,072 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Old Republic International by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 120,303 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,262,000 after buying an additional 6,664 shares during the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Old Republic International by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,714 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $279,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Old Republic International by 37.1% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 71,716 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,595,000 after purchasing an additional 19,400 shares during the last quarter. Orca Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Old Republic International during the 4th quarter valued at about $5,209,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Old Republic International by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 851,492 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $30,160,000 after purchasing an additional 42,934 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.92% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Craig R. Smiddy sold 5,296 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.60, for a total transaction of $204,425.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 138,222 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,335,369.20. This trade represents a 3.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Thomas Dare sold 27,457 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.50, for a total value of $1,002,180.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 46,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,699,294. This represents a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 43,039 shares of company stock worth $1,580,733. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Old Republic International Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of ORI stock opened at $38.64 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The company has a market cap of $9.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.69 and a beta of 0.83. Old Republic International Co. has a 1 year low of $28.59 and a 1 year high of $39.27. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $36.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $36.37.

Old Republic International (NYSE:ORI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.19. Old Republic International had a return on equity of 20.32% and a net margin of 10.36%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Old Republic International Co. will post 3.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Old Republic International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.00%. This is a positive change from Old Republic International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Old Republic International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Old Republic International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th.

About Old Republic International

Old Republic International Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the insurance underwriting and related services business primarily in the United States and Canada. It operates through three segments: General Insurance, Title Insurance, and Republic Financial Indemnity Group Run-off Business.