California State Teachers Retirement System Decreases Stake in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. $SIGI

Key Points

• California State Teachers Retirement System reduced its Selective Insurance Group stake by 2.8% in the second quarter, selling 2,019 shares and retaining 71,294 shares worth about $6.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own 82.88% of SIGI.
• SIGI reported quarterly earnings of $1.95 per share, beating estimates of $1.66, while revenue reached $1.39 billion versus expectations of $1.30 billion. The company also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.43 per share, yielding approximately 1.9%.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $100.33; shares recently traded at $88.72. An executive vice president also sold 17,100 shares, reducing his position by 50.79%.

California State Teachers Retirement System trimmed its position in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI - Free Report) by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 71,294 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 2,019 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.12% of Selective Insurance Group worth $6,916,231 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Selective Insurance Group during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new position in Selective Insurance Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 177.5% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 591 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 378 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group during the 4th quarter valued at $61,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Selective Insurance Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $110,000. 82.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Selective Insurance Group

In related news, EVP Michael Lanza sold 17,100 shares of Selective Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.04, for a total value of $1,608,084.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 16,565 shares in the company, valued at $1,557,772.60. This trade represents a 50.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SIGI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $72.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Selective Insurance Group from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Selective Insurance Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Selective Insurance Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and set a $97.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $101.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $100.33.

Selective Insurance Group Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of SIGI stock traded down $0.70 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $88.72. 249,643 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 538,176. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.02 and a beta of 0.29. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $72.78 and a twelve month high of $100.40. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $93.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $88.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.29.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.29. Selective Insurance Group had a net margin of 9.10% and a return on equity of 14.51%. The company had revenue of $1.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.31 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 8.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Selective Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 17th. Selective Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.34%.

Selective Insurance Group Profile

Selective Insurance Group, Inc NASDAQ: SIGI is an insurance holding company that provides property and casualty insurance through its operating subsidiaries. Founded in 1926 and headquartered in Branchville, New Jersey, the company serves commercial and personal customers through a network of independent insurance agents.

Selective's products include commercial automobile, property, general liability, workers' compensation and other coverage designed for businesses, municipalities and professionals.

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