Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI) Receives $104.57 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the eight research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $104.57.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on SIGI shares. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Selective Insurance Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the company from $95.00 to $105.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on Selective Insurance Group in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $105.00 price objective on the stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Selective Insurance Group news, CAO Anthony D. Harnett sold 1,404 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 15,946 shares in the company, valued at $1,476,759.06. This represents a 8.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Selective Insurance Group

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SIGI. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Selective Insurance Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Selective Insurance Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 64.4% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 485 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 18.1% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,840 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $172,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. 82.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of Selective Insurance Group stock traded up $1.67 on Tuesday, reaching $92.89. The company had a trading volume of 227,342 shares, compared to its average volume of 265,018. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $96.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $92.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.35. Selective Insurance Group has a 52-week low of $81.00 and a 52-week high of $109.58. The firm has a market cap of $5.65 billion, a PE ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 0.62.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.29). Selective Insurance Group had a return on equity of 8.11% and a net margin of 5.01%. The firm had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.51 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Selective Insurance Group will post 3.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Selective Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This is a positive change from Selective Insurance Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Selective Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio is 40.97%.

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.