RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) Short Interest Down 15.1% in December

RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 418,100 shares, a decline of 15.1% from the November 30th total of 492,700 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 166,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.5 days. Approximately 1.0% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RLI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on RLI from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Compass Point upped their price objective on RLI from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on RLI from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of RLI in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of RLI in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $182.00 price objective for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $177.40.

RLI Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:RLI traded down $1.43 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $165.89. The company had a trading volume of 77,281 shares, compared to its average volume of 156,828. RLI has a 1-year low of $132.01 and a 1-year high of $182.29. The firm has a market cap of $7.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.23 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $168.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $155.47.

Shares of RLI are set to split before the market opens on Thursday, January 16th. The 2-1 split was announced on Thursday, November 7th. The newly created shares will be issued to shareholders after the closing bell on Wednesday, January 15th.

RLI (NYSE:RLI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.33. RLI had a net margin of 23.77% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The business had revenue of $470.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $491.54 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.61 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 41.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that RLI will post 5.85 EPS for the current year.

RLI Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a None dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a $4.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is a positive change from RLI’s previous None dividend of $2.25. RLI’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling at RLI

In other RLI news, Director Michael J. Stone sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.55, for a total transaction of $33,910.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 214,811 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,421,205.05. The trade was a 0.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 5.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On RLI

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of RLI in the 3rd quarter valued at about $217,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in RLI by 117.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 8,571 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,206,000 after buying an additional 4,634 shares during the period. Bridges Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in RLI in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $954,000. Bruce & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in shares of RLI by 1,020.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bruce & Co. Inc. now owns 22,400 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,151,000 after buying an additional 20,400 shares during the period. Finally, Donaldson Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of RLI during the 3rd quarter valued at $3,469,000. 77.89% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corp., an insurance holding company, underwrites property and casualty insurance. Its Casualty segment provides commercial and personal coverage products; and general liability products, such as coverage for third-party liability of commercial insureds, including manufacturers, contractors, apartments, and mercantile.