CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) Short Interest Up 31.5% in November

CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 900,200 shares, a growth of 31.5% from the October 31st total of 684,800 shares. Currently, 0.3% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 313,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.9 days.

Insider Activity at CNA Financial

In other CNA Financial news, EVP Mark Steven James sold 18,547 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.58, for a total transaction of $938,107.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,159,141.86. This trade represents a 44.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Douglas Worman sold 22,973 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.75, for a total value of $1,119,933.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 133,777 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,521,628.75. The trade was a 14.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CNA. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CNA Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of CNA Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $55,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in CNA Financial by 36.9% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,566 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. bought a new stake in CNA Financial during the second quarter worth $92,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of CNA Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $94,000. 98.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CNA. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of CNA Financial from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on CNA Financial from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded CNA Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th.

CNA Financial Stock Performance

CNA stock traded up $0.17 during trading on Friday, reaching $50.44. 258,763 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 274,376. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $48.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $47.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market cap of $13.66 billion, a PE ratio of 10.51, a P/E/G ratio of 6.44 and a beta of 0.65. CNA Financial has a 1-year low of $40.92 and a 1-year high of $52.36.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The insurance provider reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.15 billion. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 13.30% and a net margin of 9.26%. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.06 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that CNA Financial will post 4.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. CNA Financial’s payout ratio is 36.67%.

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.