MQS Management LLC Invests $286,000 in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)

MQS Management LLC acquired a new position in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,048 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $286,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 45.3% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 5,052 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $473,000 after purchasing an additional 1,576 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 158.2% in the 2nd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 21,418 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,010,000 after buying an additional 13,123 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Selective Insurance Group by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,416,957 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $132,949,000 after buying an additional 62,699 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 11.6% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 397,937 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $37,338,000 after acquiring an additional 41,290 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 0.6% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 100,398 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $9,420,000 after acquiring an additional 560 shares in the last quarter. 82.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Selective Insurance Group Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of SIGI opened at $90.24 on Friday. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $81.00 and a 1-year high of $109.58. The company has a market capitalization of $5.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $89.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $95.53.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The insurance provider reported ($1.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($2.59). The company had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.21 billion. Selective Insurance Group had a return on equity of 8.75% and a net margin of 5.12%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.99 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Selective Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. Selective Insurance Group’s payout ratio is currently 24.74%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO John J. Marchioni bought 2,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $83.56 per share, for a total transaction of $200,544.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 136,397 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,397,333.32. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Terrence W. Cavanaugh bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $85.85 per share, with a total value of $171,700.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 20,651 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,772,888.35. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John J. Marchioni purchased 2,400 shares of Selective Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $83.56 per share, for a total transaction of $200,544.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 136,397 shares in the company, valued at $11,397,333.32. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on SIGI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Selective Insurance Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $104.00 to $99.00 in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $104.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Selective Insurance Group from $103.00 to $96.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $98.00 to $97.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.67.

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.