Vanguard Group Inc. Cuts Stake in Employers Holdings Inc $EIG

Key Points

• Vanguard trimmed its stake in Employers Holdings by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 152,759 shares and leaving it with 2,626,330 shares valued at about $113.4 million. Institutional investors still own a large majority of the company at 80.49%.
• Employers posted mixed quarterly results, reporting EPS of $0.53 versus the $0.55 estimate and revenue of $207.6 million versus expectations of $213.04 million. Revenue rose 2.5% year over year, but earnings fell from $0.87 per share in the same quarter last year.
• The company raised its dividend to $0.34 per share quarterly from $0.32, implying a 3.3% annualized yield. Analysts currently have a consensus Hold rating on the stock.

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its position in shares of Employers Holdings Inc (NYSE:EIG - Free Report) by 5.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,626,330 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 152,759 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 11.68% of Employers worth $113,379,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its stake in shares of Employers by 133.5% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 635 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Employers by 35.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,561 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Employers by 230.2% during the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,981 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 1,381 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in Employers by 179.6% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,276 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 1,462 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Employers by 26.8% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,718 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 575 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.49% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on EIG shares. Zacks Research lowered shares of Employers from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Employers from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Employers has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Ann Marie Smith sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.29, for a total transaction of $196,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $341,980.16. The trade was a 36.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael Pedraja bought 2,000 shares of Employers stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $39.73 per share, with a total value of $79,460.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 19,830 shares of the company's stock, valued at $787,845.90. The trade was a 11.22% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Employers Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EIG opened at $41.35 on Wednesday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $41.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market cap of $754.15 million, a PE ratio of 125.29 and a beta of 0.48. Employers Holdings Inc has a 52-week low of $35.73 and a 52-week high of $49.91.

Employers (NYSE:EIG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.55 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $207.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $213.04 million. Employers had a net margin of 0.95% and a return on equity of 1.10%. The business's revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.87 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Employers Holdings Inc will post 2.22 EPS for the current year.

Employers Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 13th. This is a boost from Employers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Employers's payout ratio is 387.88%.

Employers Profile

Employers Holdings, Inc NYSE: EIG is a publicly traded property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. Through its subsidiaries, Employers Mutual Casualty Company and Employers Preferred Insurance Company, the firm specializes in providing workers' compensation coverage alongside an array of commercial insurance products. Its service offerings include general liability, commercial auto, businessowners policies and umbrella coverages, tailored to meet the risk-management needs of small and mid-sized businesses across multiple industries.

The company markets its insurance solutions primarily through a network of independent agencies and brokers, leveraging local market expertise to underwrite policies that address the unique exposures faced by clients in manufacturing, construction, healthcare, retail and service sectors.

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