Everest Group, Ltd. (NYSE:EG) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Everest Group, Ltd. (NYSE:EG) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 980,600 shares, a decrease of 6.6% from the September 30th total of 1,050,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 376,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days. Currently, 3.0% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on EG. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $403.00 target price on shares of Everest Group in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Everest Group from $496.00 to $485.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Everest Group from $393.00 to $406.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Everest Group from $440.00 to $457.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, UBS Group raised Everest Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $438.36.

Everest Group Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of Everest Group stock traded down $3.13 during trading on Friday, hitting $352.48. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 82,544 shares, compared to its average volume of 343,906. Everest Group has a 52 week low of $343.76 and a 52 week high of $417.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.38. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $387.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $380.81. The company has a market capitalization of $15.18 billion, a PE ratio of 5.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.61.

Everest Group (NYSE:EG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $16.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $16.97 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $4.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.32 billion. Everest Group had a return on equity of 23.13% and a net margin of 16.99%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $15.21 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Everest Group will post 60.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Everest Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a $2.00 dividend. This represents a $8.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. Everest Group’s payout ratio is 12.52%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Everest Group by 284.8% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 24,556 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,622,000 after buying an additional 18,175 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Everest Group by 163.9% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,772 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,897,000 after purchasing an additional 2,964 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. bought a new position in Everest Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,505,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in Everest Group by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 289,439 shares of the company’s stock valued at $115,052,000 after buying an additional 4,412 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Everest Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $921,000. 92.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Everest Group

Everest Group, Ltd., through its subsidiaries, provides reinsurance and insurance products in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through two segment, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Reinsurance segment writes property and casualty reinsurance; and specialty lines of business through reinsurance brokers, as well as directly with ceding companies in the United States, Bermuda, Ireland, Canada, Singapore, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.