Quantbot Technologies LP Invests $5.42 Million in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)

Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 58,035 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $5,415,000. Quantbot Technologies LP owned approximately 0.10% of Selective Insurance Group at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC increased its stake in Selective Insurance Group by 28.6% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,468,801 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $510,239,000 after acquiring an additional 1,216,801 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 112.7% in the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 427,180 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $42,667,000 after purchasing an additional 226,387 shares during the period. Emerald Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Selective Insurance Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $11,767,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 717,946 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $66,984,000 after buying an additional 101,045 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Selective Insurance Group by 319.5% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 129,184 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $12,053,000 after buying an additional 98,390 shares during the last quarter. 82.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SIGI has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Selective Insurance Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. One research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $101.67.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Up 2.2 %

SIGI stock traded up $2.20 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $102.00. The company had a trading volume of 413,364 shares, compared to its average volume of 357,568. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $81.00 and a 52-week high of $109.58. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $92.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.90 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.29). Selective Insurance Group had a net margin of 5.01% and a return on equity of 8.11%. The company had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.51 EPS. The business's revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 3.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Selective Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.38 dividend. This is an increase from Selective Insurance Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Selective Insurance Group's payout ratio is presently 40.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Anthony D. Harnett sold 1,404 shares of the business'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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 15,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,476,759.06. The trade was a 8.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.