Pullen Investment Management LLC Acquires 9,812 Shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)

Pullen Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI - Free Report) by 77.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,548 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 9,812 shares during the period. Selective Insurance Group makes up about 1.3% of Pullen Investment Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Pullen Investment Management LLC's holdings in Selective Insurance Group were worth $2,064,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 17,628 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,649,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 2,542 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $238,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,132 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $199,000 after buying an additional 232 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in Selective Insurance Group by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 6,141 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $574,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,496 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.88% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on SIGI. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of 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. Wall Street Zen raised Selective Insurance Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $94.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Anthony D. Harnett sold 1,352 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.06, for a total value of $117,705.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 15,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,388,258.76. This represents a 7.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Selective Insurance Group Price Performance

NASDAQ SIGI traded down $0.70 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $85.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 261,026 shares, compared to its average volume of 390,681. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.34. The company's 50-day moving average is $87.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.36. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $78.13 and a fifty-two week high of $103.56. The stock has a market cap of $5.17 billion, a PE ratio of 26.43 and a beta of 0.49.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.86 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.30 billion. Selective Insurance Group had a net margin of 4.26% and a return on equity of 7.33%. Selective Insurance Group's revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.33 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current year.

Selective Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. Selective Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.42%.

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.