Employers Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EIG) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Employers Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EIG) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 285,900 shares, a decline of 21.2% from the February 13th total of 363,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 139,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.0 days. Approximately 1.2% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com cut Employers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th.

Insider Activity at Employers

In other Employers news, insider Ann Marie Smith sold 1,385 shares of Employers stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.24, for a total value of $70,967.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 8,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $450,963.24. The trade was a 13.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director James R. Kroner sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.50, for a total transaction of $51,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,458 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,208,087. The trade was a 4.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 5,385 shares of company stock valued at $276,267. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Employers

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Employers by 312.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Employers during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Employers by 50.1% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 596 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Employers in the 4th quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Employers by 15.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.49% of the company’s stock.

Employers Stock Performance

Shares of EIG stock traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $50.11. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 61,060 shares, compared to its average volume of 117,883. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $49.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.86. Employers has a 1-year low of $38.67 and a 1-year high of $54.44. The company has a market cap of $1.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.63 and a beta of 0.21.

Employers (NYSE:EIG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.07. Employers had a net margin of 13.47% and a return on equity of 8.99%. The firm had revenue of $216.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $221.18 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Employers will post 3.63 EPS for the current year.

Employers Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.39%. Employers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.48%.

About Employers

Employers Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates in the commercial property and casualty insurance industry primarily in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Employers and Cerity. It offers workers’ compensation insurance to small businesses in low to medium hazard industries under the Employers and Cerity brands.