Emerald Advisers LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)

Emerald Advisers LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI) by 35.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 81,667 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 44,458 shares during the quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC owned approximately 0.13% of Selective Insurance Group worth $7,637,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. FMR LLC raised its position 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 worth $510,239,000 after acquiring an additional 1,216,801 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Selective Insurance Group in the 4th quarter worth $69,504,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new position in Selective Insurance Group during the third quarter valued at $37,726,000. Eagle Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 112.7% during the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 427,180 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $42,667,000 after acquiring an additional 226,387 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Selective Insurance Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $203,000. Institutional investors own 82.88% of the company’s stock.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of SIGI stock opened at $88.71 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $86.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $91.79. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $78.13 and a 12-month high of $109.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.55 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by ($0.37). Selective Insurance Group had a net margin of 4.26% and a return on equity of 7.33%. Equities research analysts predict that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Selective Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.71%. Selective Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on SIGI. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $93.00 price target (down previously from $116.00) on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Selective Insurance Group from $95.00 to $87.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.71.

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.