Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $94.02, but opened at $88.56. Selective Insurance Group shares last traded at $85.47, with a volume of 158,314 shares traded.

The insurance provider reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.99 by ($0.37). Selective Insurance Group had a return on equity of 8.11% and a net margin of 5.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on SIGI shares. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Selective Insurance Group from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Selective Insurance Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $95.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $105.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Selective Insurance Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.57.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Selective Insurance Group by 28.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,468,801 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $510,239,000 after acquiring an additional 1,216,801 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,401,897 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $224,097,000 after purchasing an additional 71,296 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Selective Insurance Group by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,586,527 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $148,048,000 after buying an additional 26,880 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its position in Selective Insurance Group by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 1,055,321 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $98,694,000 after buying an additional 84,341 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Selective Insurance Group by 2.5% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 867,691 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $80,956,000 after buying an additional 21,374 shares during the last quarter. 82.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Selective Insurance Group Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $5.14 billion, a PE ratio of 22.91 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $95.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $93.05.

About Selective Insurance Group

Selective Insurance Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance products and services in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Standard Commercial Lines, Standard Personal Lines, E&S Lines, and Investments. It offers casualty insurance products that covers the financial consequences of employee injuries in the course of employment and bodily injury and/or property damage to a third party; property insurance products, which covers the accidental loss of an insured's real property, personal property, and/or earnings due to the property's loss; and flood insurance products.