Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC Sells 11,890 Shares of Employers Holdings Inc $EIG

Key Points

• Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC reduced its stake in Employers Holdings Inc by 53.7%, now owning 10,261 shares valued at approximately $520,000.
• Employers Holdings recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.32, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.1%.
• Analysts have downgraded Employers Holdings from a "hold" to a "sell" rating, despite a consensus rating of "buy" and a target price of $58.00.

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC trimmed its position in shares of Employers Holdings Inc (NYSE:EIG - Free Report) by 53.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,261 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 11,890 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC's holdings in Employers were worth $520,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Employers during the fourth quarter worth $48,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Employers by 16.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,147 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Employers during the fourth quarter worth $137,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Employers by 8.0% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,895 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $147,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Employers during the first quarter worth $294,000. 80.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Employers Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EIG traded down $0.51 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $41.85. 124,961 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 158,428. Employers Holdings Inc has a 1-year low of $38.19 and a 1-year high of $54.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $983.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.21 and a beta of 0.53. The company's 50-day moving average price is $43.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.87.

Employers (NYSE:EIG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.94 by ($0.46). Employers had a return on equity of 7.56% and a net margin of 11.37%.The business had revenue of $246.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $217.17 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. Employers's revenue for the quarter was up 13.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Employers Holdings Inc will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Employers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 13th were paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 13th. Employers's payout ratio is currently 31.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen lowered Employers from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, August 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $58.00.

Employers Company Profile

Employers Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates in the commercial property and casualty insurance industry primarily in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Employers and Cerity. It offers workers' compensation insurance to small businesses in low to medium hazard industries under the Employers and Cerity brands.