O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Raises Position in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 35,301 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,866 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in CNA Financial were worth $1,708,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CNA. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in CNA Financial by 66.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,177,110 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $56,937,000 after buying an additional 468,058 shares in the last quarter. CORDA Investment Management LLC. grew its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. CORDA Investment Management LLC. now owns 661,532 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,998,000 after acquiring an additional 11,597 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in CNA Financial by 36.5% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 363,389 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $17,577,000 after acquiring an additional 97,180 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in CNA Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $14,859,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in CNA Financial by 158.0% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 288,443 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $14,116,000 after purchasing an additional 176,649 shares in the last quarter. 98.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CNA Financial Trading Down 7.4 %

CNA Financial stock opened at $47.00 on Friday. CNA Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $42.33 and a 1 year high of $52.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $49.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market cap of $12.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.35, a PEG ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.47.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.14. CNA Financial had a net margin of 6.72% and a return on equity of 12.90%. On average, equities analysts predict that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.92%. This is a boost from CNA Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. CNA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 52.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CNA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of CNA Financial from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com cut CNA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th.

Insider Activity at CNA Financial

In other news, Chairman Dino Robusto sold 6,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.86, for a total value of $305,375.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 720,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,200,796.12. This represents a 0.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 12,991 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.06, for a total transaction of $637,338.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 75,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,709,524.72. The trade was a 14.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 25,491 shares of company stock valued at $1,261,838 over the last 90 days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About CNA Financial

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.