Short Interest in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) Drops By 13.6%

CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 968,200 shares, a decrease of 13.6% from the February 13th total of 1,120,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 316,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days. Approximately 0.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insider Activity

In other CNA Financial news, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 12,991 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.06, for a total transaction of $637,338.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 75,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,709,524.72. The trade was a 14.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Dino Robusto purchased 3,896 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $47.63 per share, with a total value of $185,566.48. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chairman now directly owns 724,338 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,500,218.94. This trade represents a 0.54 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of CNA Financial

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Savant Capital LLC boosted its position in CNA Financial by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 9,139 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $442,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in CNA Financial by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,703 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $179,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its position in CNA Financial by 4.1% in the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 6,526 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $319,000 after buying an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 29.2% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,265 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 286 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of CNA Financial by 16.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,051 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. 98.45% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CNA Financial Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of CNA Financial stock opened at $49.20 on Friday. CNA Financial has a 1 year low of $42.33 and a 1 year high of $52.36. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.94. The firm has a market cap of $13.33 billion, a PE ratio of 13.98, a PEG ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.14. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 6.72%. Analysts expect that CNA Financial will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.74%. This is a positive change from CNA Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. CNA Financial’s payout ratio is presently 52.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CNA has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com cut CNA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of CNA Financial from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th.

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.