Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI) to Issue $0.38 Quarterly Dividend

Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, January 29th,NASDAQ Dividends reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of 0.38 per share by the insurance provider on Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th.

Selective Insurance Group has raised its dividend by an average of 11.6% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 11 years. Selective Insurance Group has a dividend payout ratio of 17.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Selective Insurance Group to earn $8.55 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.52 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 17.8%.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Up 0.6 %

NASDAQ SIGI traded up $0.50 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $83.27. The stock had a trading volume of 254,418 shares, compared to its average volume of 394,419. The company has a market capitalization of $5.06 billion, a PE ratio of 25.89 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $94.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.65. Selective Insurance Group has a twelve month low of $80.84 and a twelve month high of $109.58.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by ($0.37). Selective Insurance Group had a return on equity of 7.33% and a net margin of 4.26%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Selective Insurance Group will post 7.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SIGI. BMO Capital Markets raised Selective Insurance Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $95.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Selective Insurance Group from $95.00 to $87.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Selective Insurance Group from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Bank of America boosted their target price 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. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $102.00.

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.