Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI) Receives $98.67 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seven ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have issued a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $98.50.

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SIGI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Selective Insurance Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $104.00 to $99.00 in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $89.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Selective Insurance Group from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $103.00 to $96.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 22nd.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SIGI opened at $93.94 on Friday. Selective Insurance Group has a 52 week low of $81.00 and a 52 week high of $109.58. The company’s 50 day moving average is $89.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $94.24. The company has a market cap of $5.71 billion, a PE ratio of 25.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The insurance provider reported ($1.10) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($2.59). The business had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.21 billion. Selective Insurance Group had a net margin of 5.12% and a return on equity of 8.75%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.99 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Selective Insurance Group will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Selective Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.49%. Selective Insurance Group’s payout ratio is 38.25%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Terrence W. Cavanaugh acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $85.85 per share, for a total transaction of $171,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,651 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,772,888.35. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Selective Insurance Group news, CEO John J. Marchioni bought 2,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $83.56 per share, for a total transaction of $200,544.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 136,397 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,397,333.32. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Terrence W. Cavanaugh purchased 2,000 shares of Selective Insurance Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $85.85 per share, with a total value of $171,700.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 20,651 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,772,888.35. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of SIGI. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,574,472 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $717,735,000 after purchasing an additional 367,987 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Selective Insurance Group by 188.2% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,450,417 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $144,287,000 after buying an additional 947,147 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 4.6% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,416,957 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $132,949,000 after buying an additional 62,699 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its position in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 988,846 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $92,783,000 after acquiring an additional 11,327 shares during the period. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 616,901 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $57,883,000 after acquiring an additional 38,400 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.88% of the company’s stock.

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.