Victory Capital Management Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI - Free Report) by 98.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,219 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 903,117 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Selective Insurance Group were worth $1,327,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in Selective Insurance Group during the third quarter worth about $230,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 237.5% during the third quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 24,207 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,259,000 after buying an additional 17,034 shares during the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Selective Insurance Group by 17.1% during the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 4,585 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $428,000 after purchasing an additional 669 shares during the period. Financial Strategies Group Inc. boosted its position in Selective Insurance Group by 27.3% during the third quarter. Financial Strategies Group Inc. now owns 5,019 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $481,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075 shares during the period. Finally, Emerald Advisers LLC bought a new position in Selective Insurance Group during the third quarter worth about $11,767,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on SIGI shares. Bank of America increased their target price 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. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Selective Insurance Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Selective Insurance Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $101.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Selective Insurance Group

In other Selective Insurance Group news, CAO Anthony D. Harnett sold 1,404 shares of Selective Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total transaction of $130,024.44. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 15,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,476,759.06. This trade represents a 8.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Selective Insurance Group Price Performance

Shares of SIGI stock traded up $2.20 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $102.00. The stock had a trading volume of 413,364 shares, compared to its average volume of 357,568. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $94.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $92.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $81.00 and a 12 month high of $109.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.20 billion, a PE ratio of 26.90 and a beta of 0.57.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.51 earnings per share. Selective Insurance Group's revenue was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 3.59 EPS for the current year.

Selective Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This is a positive change from Selective Insurance Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. Selective Insurance Group's payout ratio is presently 40.97%.

Selective Insurance Group 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.