Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado Cuts Stock Holdings in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)

Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lowered its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI) by 12.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 193,336 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 27,900 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado’s holdings in Selective Insurance Group were worth $18,081,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 1,055,321 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $98,694,000 after acquiring an additional 84,341 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Selective Insurance Group in the 4th quarter worth about $93,409,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Selective Insurance Group by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 884,230 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $82,693,000 after buying an additional 16,539 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 15.4% during the 4th quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 828,327 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $77,465,000 after buying an additional 110,381 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Selective Insurance Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $69,504,000. 82.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of Selective Insurance Group stock opened at $87.57 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.20 and a beta of 0.45. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $78.13 and a 52-week high of $103.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.34. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $86.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $91.31.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.89 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.30 billion. Selective Insurance Group had a net margin of 4.26% and a return on equity of 7.33%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.33 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current year.

Selective Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Selective Insurance Group’s payout ratio is currently 41.42%.

Insider Activity

In other Selective Insurance Group news, CAO Anthony D. Harnett sold 1,352 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.06, for a total value of $117,705.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 15,946 shares in the company, valued at $1,388,258.76. This trade represents a 7.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $95.00 to $87.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $93.00 price target (down from $116.00) on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a report on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $95.17.

Selective Insurance Group Company Profile

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.