Safety Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SAFT) Hits New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Safety Insurance Group (NASDAQ: SAFT) hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $103.00 and rising about 41% from its prior close of $72.94.
• Despite the price surge, the stock still carries a Hold consensus from analysts, with recent ratings upgrades from Wall Street Zen and Zacks Research but no bullish buy recommendation.
• The company recently reported weak quarterly earnings, posting a loss of $0.72 per share versus expectations for a profit, while also paying a $0.92 quarterly dividend that annualizes to a 3.6% yield.

Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFT - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $103.00 and last traded at $103.00, with a volume of 38868 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $72.94.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on SAFT. Wall Street Zen upgraded Safety Insurance Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Safety Insurance Group in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Safety Insurance Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Safety Insurance Group has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Safety Insurance Group Trading Up 41.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.39. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $72.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.55. The company has a market capitalization of $1.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.37 and a beta of 0.21.

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 for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by ($2.17). The company had revenue of $314.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $315.01 million. Safety Insurance Group had a return on equity of 6.31% and a net margin of 4.94%. Research analysts predict that Safety Insurance Group, Inc. will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Safety Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend 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 87.00%.

Insider Transactions at Safety Insurance Group

In other news, major shareholder Corp Srb sold 34,272 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.04, for a total transaction of $2,606,042.88. Following the sale, the insider owned 1,757,733 shares of the company's stock, valued at $133,658,017.32. This trade represents a 1.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Safety Insurance Group

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

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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