Heritage Insurance (NYSE:HRTG) Stock Price Up 3.4% – Still a Buy?

Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HRTG)’s share price traded up 3.4% on Friday . The company traded as high as $14.15 and last traded at $14.25. 72,638 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 382,085 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.78.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Heritage Insurance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th.

Heritage Insurance Stock Up 7.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. The company has a fifty day moving average of $12.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.15. The company has a market cap of $632.32 million, a PE ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 1.00.

Heritage Insurance (NYSE:HRTG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The insurance provider reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.17) by $0.83. The firm had revenue of $210.26 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $199.87 million. Heritage Insurance had a net margin of 9.10% and a return on equity of 29.17%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc. will post 1.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Heritage Insurance declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the insurance provider to reacquire up to 2.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Heritage Insurance

In related news, CEO Ernie J. Garateix acquired 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $12.77 per share, with a total value of $63,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,270,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,228,218.16. This represents a 0.40 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Kirk Lusk bought 6,000 shares of Heritage Insurance stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $13.85 per share, for a total transaction of $83,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 618,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,569,770.60. This trade represents a 0.98 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have acquired 21,000 shares of company stock worth $280,450. 14.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heritage Insurance

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of Heritage Insurance by 222.2% in the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 2,900 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Heritage Insurance in the 4th quarter valued at about $121,000. Cantor Fitzgerald L. P. bought a new stake in shares of Heritage Insurance in the 4th quarter valued at about $133,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Heritage Insurance in the 4th quarter worth approximately $134,000. Finally, Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Heritage Insurance by 21.7% during the fourth quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 12,400 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $150,000 after purchasing an additional 2,210 shares in the last quarter. 59.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Heritage Insurance Company Profile

Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides personal and commercial residential insurance products. The company offers personal residential insurance in Alabama, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Virginia; commercial residential insurance for properties in Florida, New Jersey, and New York; and licensed in the state of Pennsylvania, as well as personal residential and wind-only property insurance.