Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Thursday morning.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $93.00 to $92.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $95.00 to $87.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Selective Insurance Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $93.50.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Up 2.4%

SIGI stock opened at $88.63 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.34. Selective Insurance Group has a one year low of $78.13 and a one year high of $103.56. The company has a market capitalization of $5.39 billion, a PE ratio of 27.52 and a beta of 0.51. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $88.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $90.72.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.86 by ($0.10). Selective Insurance Group had a return on equity of 7.33% and a net margin of 4.26%. The firm had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.33 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Selective Insurance Group will post 7.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Selective Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Selective Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.42%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Anthony D. Harnett sold 1,352 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.06, for a total transaction of $117,705.12. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 15,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,388,258.76. The trade was a 7.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Selective Insurance Group

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SIGI. Barclays PLC increased its stake in Selective Insurance Group by 171.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 114,790 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $10,711,000 after purchasing an additional 72,530 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 38.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 6,296 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $603,000 after buying an additional 1,747 shares during the last quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP raised its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 3,255 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $304,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 37.1% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 429 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 957.1% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 444 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 402 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.88% of the company’s stock.

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.