Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI) Shares Purchased by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI - Free Report) by 40.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,759 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 9,931 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp owned about 0.06% of Selective Insurance Group worth $3,313,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in Selective Insurance Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Selective Insurance Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 81.5% in 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 period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Selective Insurance Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 245.9% in 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 period. 82.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Selective Insurance Group

In other news, CAO Anthony D. Harnett sold 1,404 shares of Selective Insurance Group stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The stock was 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 directly owns 15,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,476,759.06. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SIGI. Bank of America lifted 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Selective Insurance Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $104.00 to $99.00 in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised Selective Insurance Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target 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. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Selective Insurance Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $101.67.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Up 2.0 %

Selective Insurance Group stock traded up $1.98 during trading on Friday, reaching $99.88. 438,145 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 446,541. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $81.00 and a 52-week high of $109.58. The company has a market capitalization of $6.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.92, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $92.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $92.87.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 net margin of 5.01% and a return on equity of 8.11%. The business had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.51 EPS. Selective Insurance Group's revenue for the quarter was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 3.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 $0.38 dividend. 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 1.52%. This is an increase from Selective Insurance Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Selective Insurance Group's payout ratio is currently 37.74%.

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.