Raymond James Financial Inc. Reduces Holdings in Employers Holdings Inc $EIG

Raymond James Financial Inc. lessened its position in shares of Employers Holdings Inc (NYSE:EIG - Free Report) by 6.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 136,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 8,781 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.57% of Employers worth $6,921,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Employers in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Employers during the fourth quarter worth about $48,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in Employers during the fourth quarter worth about $137,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in Employers by 8.0% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,895 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $147,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. 80.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Employers from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, August 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $58.00.

Employers Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE:EIG traded down $0.81 during trading on Friday, reaching $42.54. The company had a trading volume of 142,643 shares, compared to its average volume of 167,971. The company has a fifty day moving average of $44.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.38 and a beta of 0.53. Employers Holdings Inc has a 12 month low of $38.19 and a 12 month high of $54.44.

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

Employers Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th were issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 13th. Employers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.22%.

About Employers

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.