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Reasons Why Kinsale Capital (KNSL) Stock is a Solid Pick Now

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Kinsale Capital Group, Inc. (KNSL - Free Report) has been gaining momentum on the back of rate increases, higher premium growth rate and lower reinstatement premiums and prudent capital deployment.

Growth Projections

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2023 earnings per share is pegged at $8.98, indicating a year-over-year increase of 22.3%.

Northbound Estimate Revision

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2023 has moved 0.9% north in the past 30 days, reflecting analysts’ optimism.

Earnings Surprise History

Kinsale Capital has a solid earnings surprise history. It beat estimates in each of the last four quarters, the average being 15.16%.

Zacks Rank & Price Performance

Shares of this Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) property and casualty insurer have gained 40.3% in a year, outperforming the industry’s increase of 1.3%. We expect the company’s policy to ramp up its growth profile and capital position and drive shares higher.

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Return on Equity

The company’s Return on Equity for the trailing 12 months is 24.6%, which expanded 540 basis points year over year and was better than the industry average of 6.7%, reflecting efficiency in utilizing shareholders’ fund.

Style Score

Kinsale Capital has a VGM Score of B. VGM Score helps identify stocks with the most attractive value, best growth and the most promising momentum.

Business Tailwinds

Kinsale Capital’s premium income is expected to improve in the near term on the back of increasing submissions and rate increases.

The combination of highly controlled underwriting combined with advanced technology-driven low costs and a focus on the Excess and Surplus Lines Insurance market are driving the profitability and growth of Kinsale Capital.

The Excess and Surplus Lines insurance segment continues to witness rapid growth owing to dislocation in the overall property and casualty market.

The expense ratio is expected to gain from the lower reinstatement premiums on certain property reinsurance treaties that do not have ceding commissions as well as lower other underwriting expenses due to higher net earned premiums.

Strong cash flows enable Kinsale Capital to engage in shareholder-friendly moves like dividend hikes. Net cash provided by operating activities more than doubled over the last two years.

Banking on solid cash flow, KNSL has increased dividend since 2017 at a five-year CAGR (2016-2022) of 14.6%.

Kinsale Capital has an impressive Growth Score of A. This style score helps analyze the growth prospects of a company. Back-tested results have shown that stocks with a favorable Growth Score when combined with a solid Zacks Rank offer better returns.

Stocks to Consider

Some top-ranked stocks from the property and casualty insurance industry are Root, Inc. (ROOT - Free Report) , The Travelers Companies, Inc. (TRV - Free Report) and First American Financial Corporation (FAF - Free Report) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 (Strong Buy) Rank stocks here.

Root delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 22.44%. In the past year, ROOT has lost 89.2%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ROOT’s 2023 earnings indicates a year-over-year increase of 23.9%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for The Travelers’ 2023 earnings per share is pegged at $14.69, indicating year-over-year increase of 11.2%. In the past year, TRV has gained 1.3%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TRV’s 2023 has moved 0.5% north in the past 60 days, reflecting analysts’ optimism.

First American has a solid track record of beating earnings estimates in each of the last six quarters. In the past year, FAF has lost 26.3%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FAF’s 2023 earnings has moved 3.9% north in the past 60 days. 

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