Best Insurance Stocks To Buy For 2019

tags:AIG,TOP,WRB,AON,

Each day, Benzinga takes a look back at a notable market-related moment that occurred on this date.

What Happened?

On this day 39 years ago, KKR & Co. L.P. Unit (NYSE: KKR) completed the first modern leveraged buyout of a public company, taking over manufacturer Houdaille Industries for $355 million.

Where The Market Was

The Dow finished the day at 847.57. The S&P 500 traded at 100.69. Today, the Dow is trading at 23,930.15 and the S&P 500 is trading at 2,629.73.

What Else Was Going On In The World?

In 1979, Michael Jackson released his breakthrough solo album “Off The Wall.” The Entertainment and Sports Programming Network — ESPN — launched on cable television. The year-end U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate was 15.25 percent.

The Leveraged Buyout

KKR used $300 million of debt financing by a collection of banks and insurance companies to take Houdaille Industries private. The effort to assemble the financing reportedly took nearly a year. Incredibly, out of the $355 million paid for Houdaille, only about $1 million came directly from KKR.

Houdaille shareholders received $40 per share for a stock that traded at around $15 prior to the buyout. Over the next six years, Houdaille generated an average annual return of more than 33 percent for KKR investors.

Best Insurance Stocks To Buy For 2019: American International Group Inc.(AIG)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Gifford Fong Associates acquired a new position in shares of American International Group (NYSE:AIG) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 44,100 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,400,000.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  American International Group Inc (NYSE:AIG) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, August 2nd, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 17th will be paid a dividend of 0.32 per share by the insurance provider on Friday, September 28th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%.

• [By Logan Wallace]

  CNB Bank bought a new position in shares of American International Group Inc (NYSE:AIG) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 706 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $28,000.

• [By Lisa Levin]

   

  Losers Heat Biologics, Inc. (NASDAQ: HTBX) shares tumbled 48.59 percent to close at $1.275 on Thursday after the company priced its $18,000,000 public offering. InVivo Therapeutics Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: NVIV) fell 38.77 percent to close at $8.26 on Thursday. Check-Cap Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHEK) shares tumbled 27.43 percent to close at $8.81. Achaogen, Inc. (NASDAQ: AKAO) dropped 24.76 percent to close at $11.06 in reaction to a disappointing update from an FDA AdCom panel. The FDA panel voted favorably for the company's Plazcomicin for treatment of adults with complicated urinary tract infections, but also voted against the therapy to be used as a treatment for bloodstream infections. Anika Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANIK) shares declined 24.68 percent to close at $34.80 after the company posted downbeat quarterly results. LSC Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: LKSD) shares fell 24.22 percent to close at $12.64 following wider-than-expected Q1 loss. Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE: CAH) fell 21.42 percent to close at $50.80 following downbeat quarterly profit. Horizon Global Corporation (NYSE: HZN) dropped 20.42 percent to close at $6.00 following downbeat quarterly earnings. Hornbeck Offshore Services, Inc. (NYSE: HOS) slipped 20.11 percent to close at $2.90 following wider-than-expected Q1 loss. Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: ESPR) fell 19.28 percent to close at $36.93. Esperion Therapeutics stock lost roughly a third of its value Wednesday after the company reported mixed Phase III results for its leading drug candidate, bempedoic acid. JP Morgan downgraded Esperion Therapeutics from Neutral to Underweight. Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE: LPI) declined 17.77 percent to close at $8.98 after the company reported weaker-than-expected Q1 earnings. The Habit Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ: HABT) dipped 16.1 percent to close at $8.60 after the company reported downbeat quarterly results. Arcadia Biosciences, Inc. (N
• [By Max Byerly]

  These are some of the media stories that may have effected Accern’s rankings:

  Get American International Group alerts: AIG’s loss for European business worsens in 2017 (businessinsurance.com) $1.26 EPS Expected for American International Group (AIG) This Quarter (americanbankingnews.com) UBS: Buy AIG After Earnings Estimates ‘Bottom Out’ (finance.yahoo.com) American International Group (AIG) Stock Rating Upgraded by UBS (americanbankingnews.com) American International Group (AIG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts (americanbankingnews.com)

  American International Group traded up $0.36, hitting $55.15, during mid-day trading on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The stock had a trading volume of 9,821,608 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,828,715. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. American International Group has a 1-year low of $49.57 and a 1-year high of $67.30. The firm has a market cap of $49.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.98, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.24.

• [By Motley Fool Transcribers]

  American International Group Inc (NYSE:AIG)Q2 2018 Earnings Conference CallAug. 3, 2018, 8:00 a.m. ET

  Contents: Prepared Remarks Questions and Answers Call Participants Prepared Remarks:

  Operator

Best Insurance Stocks To Buy For 2019: Topdanmark A/S (TOP)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Max Byerly]

  TopCoin (CURRENCY:TOP) traded flat against the U.S. dollar during the one day period ending at 7:00 AM E.T. on September 8th. In the last seven days, TopCoin has traded flat against the U.S. dollar. TopCoin has a total market capitalization of $0.00 and $0.00 worth of TopCoin was traded on exchanges in the last day. One TopCoin coin can now be bought for about $0.0008 or 0.00000010 BTC on major cryptocurrency exchanges.

• [By Logan Wallace]

  TopCoin (CURRENCY:TOP) traded down 15.4% against the dollar during the 1-day period ending at 7:00 AM E.T. on June 21st. During the last seven days, TopCoin has traded up 4% against the dollar. TopCoin has a market cap of $0.00 and approximately $123.00 worth of TopCoin was traded on exchanges in the last day. One TopCoin coin can currently be bought for about $0.0010 or 0.00000015 BTC on popular exchanges.

Best Insurance Stocks To Buy For 2019: W.R. Berkley Corporation(WRB)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  ValuEngine cut shares of W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Monday morning.

  WRB has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Bank of America cut shares of W. R. Berkley from a neutral rating to an underperform rating and set a $74.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, June 14th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Zacks Investment Research cut shares of W. R. Berkley from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Boenning Scattergood restated a hold rating on shares of W. R. Berkley in a report on Wednesday, April 25th. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of W. R. Berkley in a report on Monday. They set a sell rating and a $74.00 target price on the stock. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the stock. W. R. Berkley currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $70.78.

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on W. R. Berkley (WRB)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Gifford Fong Associates bought a new position in shares of W. R. Berkley Corp (NYSE:WRB) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 3,000 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $217,000.

Best Insurance Stocks To Buy For 2019: Aon Corporation(AON)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Shane Hupp]

  BB&T Securities LLC raised its holdings in Aon PLC (NYSE:AON) by 6.2% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 23,068 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,352 shares during the period. BB&T Securities LLC’s holdings in AON were worth $3,237,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

• [By Motley Fool Transcribing]

  Aon (NYSE:AON) Q4 2018 Earnings Conference CallFeb. 1, 2019 8:30 a.m. ET

  Contents: Prepared Remarks Questions and Answers Call Participants Prepared Remarks:

  Operator

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  North Star Investment Management Corp. decreased its position in Aon PLC (NYSE:AON) by 17.9% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,515 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 550 shares during the period. North Star Investment Management Corp.’s holdings in AON were worth $387,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

• [By Lisa Levin] Companies Reporting Before The Bell Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $1.96 per share on revenue of $3.46 billion. Aon plc (NYSE: AON) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $2.8 per share on revenue of $2.93 billion. American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: AXL) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.81 per share on revenue of $1.75 billion. Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE: BABA) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.88 per share on revenue of $9.27 billion. LifePoint Health, Inc. (NASDAQ: LPNT) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $1.13 per share on revenue of $1.62 billion. V.F. Corporation (NYSE: VFC) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.65 per share on revenue of $2.90 billion. Newell Brands Inc. (NYSE: NWL) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.26 per share on revenue of $3.05 billion. Titan International, Inc. (NYSE: TWI) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $0.04 per share on revenue of $407.27 million. Boise Cascade Company (NYSE: BCC) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.45 per share on revenue of $1.09 billion. Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE: LNG) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.39 per share on revenue of $1.59 billion. Cboe Global Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBOE) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $1.24 per share on revenue of $308.05 million. ITT Inc. (NYSE: ITT) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.73 per share on revenue of $683.96 million. Fred's, Inc. (NASDAQ: FRED) is expected to report quarterly loss at $0.19 per share on revenue of $551.00 million. Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ: VIRT) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $0.52 per share on revenue of $288.31 million. Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P. (NYSE: CQP) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.57 per share on revenue of $1.38 billion. Genesis Energy, L.P
• [By Logan Wallace]

  AON (NYSE: AON) and CorVel (NASDAQ:CRVL) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations and dividends.