Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) Given New $116.00 Price Target at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) had its price objective lifted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $114.00 to $116.00 in a research report report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has an outperform rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

SIGI has been the topic of several other reports. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Selective Insurance Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $95.00 to $105.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Selective Insurance Group in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $105.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price target on Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Selective Insurance Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.57.

Selective Insurance Group Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of Selective Insurance Group stock opened at $89.70 on Friday. Selective Insurance Group has a 1 year low of $81.00 and a 1 year high of $109.58. The company has a market cap of $5.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.18 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $96.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $93.00.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.29). Selective Insurance Group had a return on equity of 8.11% and a net margin of 5.01%. The company had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.51 earnings per share. Selective Insurance Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Selective Insurance Group will post 3.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Selective Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. This is a boost from Selective Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Selective Insurance Group’s payout ratio is presently 40.97%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Anthony D. Harnett sold 1,404 shares of Selective Insurance Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total value of $130,024.44. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 15,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,476,759.06. The trade was a 8.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Selective Insurance Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SIGI. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in Selective Insurance Group by 8.1% during the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 13,935 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,308,000 after buying an additional 1,044 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in Selective Insurance Group in the second quarter worth $28,000. AGF Management Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 13.1% in the second quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 24,965 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,342,000 after buying an additional 2,888 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Selective Insurance Group by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 36,257 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,402,000 after buying an additional 774 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Selective Insurance Group by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 100,398 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $9,420,000 after acquiring an additional 560 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.