Safety Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SAFT) Sets New 1-Year Low - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Safety Insurance Group's stock (NASDAQ:SAFT) hit a new 12-month low, trading at $69.62 before closing at $70.21, highlighting a concerning trend for investors.
• Despite recent performance issues, Wall Street analysts upgraded the stock from "hold" to "buy," indicating optimism for future growth.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.90 per share, yielding 5.13% annually, reflecting ongoing commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Shares of Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFT - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $69.62 and last traded at $70.21, with a volume of 58181 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $70.52.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Safety Insurance Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd.

Safety Insurance Group Stock Performance

The company's fifty day moving average price is $76.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $77.58. The company has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a PE ratio of 14.19 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

Safety Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SAFT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The insurance provider reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $298.97 million during the quarter. Safety Insurance Group had a net margin of 6.29% and a return on equity of 7.99%.

Safety Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.2%. Safety Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.62%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Safety Insurance Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of SAFT. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Safety Insurance Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,200,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Safety Insurance Group by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 67,475 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $5,560,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in Safety Insurance Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $280,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Safety Insurance Group by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 212,354 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $17,498,000 after purchasing an additional 37,495 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Safety Insurance Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,023,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.04% of the company's stock.

Safety Insurance Group Company Profile

Safety Insurance Group, Inc provides private passenger and commercial automobile, and homeowner insurance in the United States. The company's private passenger automobile policies offer coverage for bodily injury and property damage to others, no-fault personal injury coverage for the insured/insured's car occupants, and physical damage coverage for an insured's own vehicle for collision or other perils.