KBC Group NV Increases Position in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)

KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI) by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,840 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Selective Insurance Group were worth $172,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Selective Insurance Group during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Selective Insurance Group during the second quarter valued at $28,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Selective Insurance Group by 81.5% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 323 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in Selective Insurance Group during the second quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Selective Insurance Group by 245.9% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,228 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $134,000 after purchasing an additional 873 shares during the last quarter. 82.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Down 1.1 %

SIGI stock opened at $95.98 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.83 billion, a PE ratio of 25.87 and a beta of 0.57. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $81.00 and a 12 month high of $109.58. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $94.14 and its 200 day moving average is $92.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.35.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.29). The company had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. Selective Insurance Group had a return on equity of 8.11% and a net margin of 5.01%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.51 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 3.63 EPS for the current year.

Selective Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.38 per share. This is an increase from Selective Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.58%. Selective Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Selective Insurance Group

In other Selective Insurance Group news, CAO Anthony D. Harnett sold 1,404 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total transaction of $130,024.44. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 15,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,476,759.06. This trade represents a 8.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Selective Insurance Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $105.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.67.

Selective Insurance Group 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.