Royce & Associates LP Sells 40,945 Shares of Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFT)

Royce & Associates LP cut its holdings in Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFT) by 50.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,347 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 40,945 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP owned approximately 0.27% of Safety Insurance Group worth $3,300,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in Safety Insurance Group by 74.8% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 7,164 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $589,000 after purchasing an additional 3,066 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its position in shares of Safety Insurance Group by 18.2% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,019 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $330,000 after buying an additional 619 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Safety Insurance Group in the 1st quarter valued at $152,000. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in shares of Safety Insurance Group by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 7,199 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $592,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the period. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Safety Insurance Group by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 2,905 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $239,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares during the period. 81.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Safety Insurance Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Safety Insurance Group

In related news, VP Glenn Hiltpold sold 389 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.41, for a total value of $32,835.49. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 11,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $945,729.64. This trade represents a 3.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Safety Insurance Group Price Performance

Shares of Safety Insurance Group stock opened at $84.83 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $80.81. Safety Insurance Group, Inc. has a one year low of $71.99 and a one year high of $90.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.80 and a beta of 0.17.

Safety Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SAFT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.40 by ($0.30). Safety Insurance Group had a net margin of 6.86% and a return on equity of 6.35%. The firm had revenue of $295.28 million for the quarter.

Safety Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.24%. Safety Insurance Group’s payout ratio is 71.29%.

About Safety Insurance Group

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.