Insider Selling: Safety Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SAFT) Major Shareholder Sells 1,240,352 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Major shareholder Corp Srb sold 1,240,352 Safety Insurance Group shares at an average price of $103.07, generating approximately $127.8 million. The sale reduced the shareholder’s position by 72.38%, leaving 473,387 shares.
• SAFT traded near its 12-month high at $103.03, with a market capitalization of approximately $1.51 billion. The stock offers a quarterly dividend of $0.92, equivalent to a 3.6% annualized yield.
• The company reported a quarterly loss of $0.72 per share, substantially below analysts’ estimate of $1.45 earnings per share, while analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating.

Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFT - Get Free Report) major shareholder Corp Srb sold 1,240,352 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.07, for a total transaction of $127,843,080.64. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 473,387 shares of the company's stock, valued at $48,791,998.09. This trade represents a 72.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company's shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Corp Srb also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, July 24th, Corp Srb sold 38,835 shares of Safety Insurance Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.08, for a total value of $4,003,111.80.
• On Monday, July 13th, Corp Srb sold 34,272 shares of Safety Insurance Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.04, for a total value of $2,606,042.88.
• On Thursday, July 9th, Corp Srb sold 2,650 shares of Safety Insurance Group stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.51, for a total value of $202,751.50.

Safety Insurance Group Price Performance

NASDAQ SAFT traded up $0.03 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $103.03. 583,999 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 270,434. The company has a market capitalization of $1.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.36 and a beta of 0.21. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Safety Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $67.04 and a 12-month high of $103.50.

Safety Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SAFT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported ($0.72) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.45 by ($2.17). Safety Insurance Group had a return on equity of 6.31% and a net margin of 4.94%.The firm had revenue of $314.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $315.01 million. As a group, analysts predict that Safety Insurance Group, Inc. will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

Safety Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. Safety Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 87.00%.

Institutional Trading of Safety Insurance Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in Safety Insurance Group by 74.8% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 388 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Bayban purchased a new position in shares of Safety Insurance Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Safety Insurance Group by 62.5% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 416 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Safety Insurance Group by 419.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 488 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in Safety Insurance Group by 653.0% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 497 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.04% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on SAFT shares. Zacks Research raised Safety Insurance Group to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Safety Insurance Group from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Safety Insurance Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

About Safety Insurance Group

Safety Insurance Group, Inc is a publicly traded property and casualty insurance holding company incorporated in Massachusetts in 1994. Its principal subsidiary, Safety Insurance Company, traces its roots back to 1923 and has since evolved into a regional personal lines insurer. The company is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, and trades on the Nasdaq under the symbol SAFT.

Safety Insurance Group focuses primarily on private passenger automobile and homeowners insurance products, along with dwelling fire, umbrella liability, and certain commercial auto coverages.

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