Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Buys 75,108 Shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI - Free Report) by 19.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 460,339 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 75,108 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 0.76% of Selective Insurance Group worth $42,139,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SIGI. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Selective Insurance Group in the 4th quarter valued at $93,409,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 36.2% in the 1st quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,128,252 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $103,280,000 after acquiring an additional 299,925 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 245.7% in the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 284,669 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $26,622,000 after acquiring an additional 202,318 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 39.6% in the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 564,542 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $52,796,000 after acquiring an additional 160,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ceredex Value Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Selective Insurance Group in the 4th quarter valued at $10,484,000. 82.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Selective Insurance Group news, CAO Anthony D. Harnett sold 1,352 shares of Selective Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.06, for a total transaction of $117,705.12. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 15,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,388,258.76. This trade represents a 7.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Selective Insurance Group Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of SIGI traded down $0.94 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $88.59. The stock had a trading volume of 482,975 shares, compared to its average volume of 394,013. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $86.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $87.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.14 and a beta of 0.48. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $78.13 and a 1-year high of $103.56.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.86 by ($0.10). Selective Insurance Group had a net margin of 4.70% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The firm had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.33 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on SIGI. Wall Street Zen upgraded Selective Insurance Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Selective Insurance Group from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Selective Insurance Group from $93.00 to $92.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Selective Insurance Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $94.00.

About Selective Insurance Group

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.