International General Insurance Holdings Ltd. (NASDAQ:IGIC) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest
by Kim Johansen · The Markets DailyInternational General Insurance Holdings Ltd. (NASDAQ:IGIC – Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 213,361 shares, a growth of 24.3% from the February 26th total of 171,634 shares. Currently, 0.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 61,883 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days.
International General Insurance Trading Up 2.7%
Shares of International General Insurance stock traded up $0.62 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $23.78. The stock had a trading volume of 48,359 shares, compared to its average volume of 64,616. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $24.58 and its 200 day moving average is $23.97. International General Insurance has a twelve month low of $20.82 and a twelve month high of $26.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of 8.29 and a beta of 0.15.
International General Insurance (NASDAQ:IGIC – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.08. International General Insurance had a return on equity of 16.98% and a net margin of 24.61%.The firm had revenue of $126.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $116.40 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that International General Insurance will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current year.
International General Insurance Announces Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a yield of 497.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 18th. International General Insurance’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.97%.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On International General Insurance
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Royce & Associates LP increased its holdings in shares of International General Insurance by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 3,173,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,628,000 after buying an additional 100,464 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in International General Insurance by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 396,512 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,948,000 after acquiring an additional 1,661 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in International General Insurance by 35.3% in the fourth quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 370,316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,291,000 after acquiring an additional 96,536 shares during the last quarter. Shay Capital LLC grew its position in International General Insurance by 13.1% in the third quarter. Shay Capital LLC now owns 237,694 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,515,000 after acquiring an additional 27,444 shares during the period. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its position in International General Insurance by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 85,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,135,000 after acquiring an additional 2,817 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.24% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of research firms have weighed in on IGIC. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on International General Insurance in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $28.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of International General Insurance in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, International General Insurance has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $28.00.
Get Our Latest Analysis on IGIC
About International General Insurance
International General Insurance (NASDAQ:IGIC) is a global specialty insurer and reinsurer focused on underwriting a diverse portfolio of property and casualty risks. Headquartered in Pembroke, Bermuda, the company provides tailored risk solutions across a broad range of industry sectors. IGIC operates within the excess and surplus lines market, leveraging specialized expertise to cover complex and hard-to-place risks that fall outside the scope of standard commercial insurance.
Founded in 1988, IGIC has grown its product offering to include marine, energy, aviation, construction, professional liability and credit & surety lines.