Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Selective Insurance Group has a “Hold” consensus rating: Of eight analysts, five rate the stock Hold, two Buy, and one Sell. The average 12-month price target is $100.33, versus a recent price of $94.01.
• The insurer exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.95 in EPS versus the $1.66 consensus and revenue of $1.39 billion versus $1.30 billion expected.
• Selective declared a quarterly dividend of $0.43 per share, equivalent to a $1.72 annual payout and a 1.8% yield; the ex-dividend date is August 17.

Shares of Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $100.3333.

SIGI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $101.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. BMO Capital Markets cut Selective Insurance Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and set a $97.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Selective Insurance Group from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Selective Insurance Group from $93.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael H. Lanza sold 17,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.04, for a total value of $1,608,084.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 16,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,557,772.60. This represents a 50.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.82% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Selective Insurance Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,680,000. Sterling Financial Planning Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Selective Insurance Group in the second quarter worth $1,054,000. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group during the second quarter worth $258,000. Vise Technologies Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group during the second quarter worth $794,000. Finally, NewEdge Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Selective Insurance Group during the second quarter valued at $259,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.88% of the company's stock.

Selective Insurance Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SIGI opened at $94.01 on Wednesday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $94.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $86.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.66 and a beta of 0.30. Selective Insurance Group has a 52 week low of $72.78 and a 52 week high of $100.40.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $1.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.30 billion. Selective Insurance Group had a return on equity of 14.51% and a net margin of 9.10%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.31 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Selective Insurance Group will post 8.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Selective Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. Selective Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.34%.

Selective Insurance Group Company Profile

Selective Insurance Group, Inc is an insurance holding company headquartered in Branchville, New Jersey. The organization traces its roots to a regional provider of property and casualty coverage and became a publicly traded holding company following its initial public offering in 1999. Since its formation, Selective has expanded through strategic acquisitions and organic growth initiatives to broaden its product offerings and strengthen its market position.

The company's core business encompasses a broad range of property and casualty insurance products designed to serve both commercial and personal lines customers.

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