Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) Price Target Raised to $116.00

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

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $105.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Selective Insurance Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $95.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Selective Insurance Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.57.

Selective Insurance Group Price Performance

Shares of Selective Insurance Group stock opened at $89.70 on Friday. 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 has a one year low of $81.00 and a one year high of $109.58. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $96.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $92.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.18 and a beta of 0.62.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) last issued its 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 firm 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.51 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Selective Insurance Group will post 3.61 EPS for the current year.

Selective Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. This is a boost from Selective Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Selective Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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 company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total value of $130,024.44. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 15,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,476,759.06. This represents a 8.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Selective Insurance Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 8.1% in the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 13,935 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,308,000 after acquiring an additional 1,044 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Selective Insurance Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. AGF Management Ltd. grew its position in Selective Insurance Group by 13.1% during the 2nd quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 24,965 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,342,000 after purchasing an additional 2,888 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake 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 valued at $3,402,000 after purchasing an additional 774 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 0.6% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 100,398 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $9,420,000 after buying an additional 560 shares during the last quarter. 82.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.