Port Capital LLC Decreases Holdings in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)

Port Capital LLC lowered its holdings in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI - Free Report) by 34.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 153,299 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 80,680 shares during the quarter. Port Capital LLC owned about 0.25% of Selective Insurance Group worth $14,337,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Selective Insurance Group during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 37.1% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 429 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its holdings in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 957.1% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 444 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 402 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in Selective Insurance Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $180,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.88% of the company's stock.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Down 2.7%

Selective Insurance Group stock opened at $86.54 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.34. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $78.13 and a 1 year high of $103.56. The firm's 50-day moving average is $88.32 and its 200-day moving average is $90.74. The company has a market cap of $5.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.88 and a beta of 0.51.

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

Selective Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Selective Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 41.42%.

Insider Transactions at Selective Insurance Group

In related news, CAO Anthony D. Harnett sold 1,352 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.06, for a total value of $117,705.12. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SIGI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a report on Thursday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Selective Insurance Group from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $93.00 to $92.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $95.00 to $87.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Selective Insurance Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $93.50.

Selective Insurance Group Profile

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.

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