Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New Investment in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 17,000 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,691,000.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Selective Insurance Group by 186.5% in the 3rd quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Selective Insurance Group by 68.9% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 255 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Selective Insurance Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Headinvest LLC bought a new stake in Selective Insurance Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $62,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its position in Selective Insurance Group by 37.3% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 747 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SIGI has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $120.00 target price on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a research report on Friday, April 5th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Selective Insurance Group from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Selective Insurance Group from $111.00 to $109.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $104.00 price target on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a research note on Monday, April 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $105.17.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Brenda M. Hall sold 2,626 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.88, for a total value of $278,040.88. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 10,511 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,112,904.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of SIGI traded up $1.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $102.49. 394,087 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 302,586. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.99 and a 1 year high of $109.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.58, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.55. The business's 50-day moving average price is $103.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $102.82.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The insurance provider reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.92 by $0.02. Selective Insurance Group had a return on equity of 14.43% and a net margin of 8.57%. The firm had revenue of $1.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.11 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Selective Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 15th were paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Selective Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.01%.

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.