Entropy Technologies LP Makes New Investment in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI)

Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIGI) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 7,429 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $695,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Selective Insurance Group by 28.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,468,801 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $510,239,000 after buying an additional 1,216,801 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Selective Insurance Group in the third quarter valued at about $37,726,000. Eagle Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group by 112.7% in the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 427,180 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $42,667,000 after acquiring an additional 226,387 shares during the period. Emerald Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Selective Insurance Group during the third quarter worth about $11,767,000. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its stake in Selective Insurance Group by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 717,946 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $66,984,000 after purchasing an additional 101,045 shares during the period. 82.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $93.00 price objective (down from $116.00) on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Selective Insurance Group from $95.00 to $87.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Selective Insurance Group in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Selective Insurance Group from $96.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised Selective Insurance Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $95.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Selective Insurance Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.71.

Selective Insurance Group Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ SIGI opened at $84.11 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.12 and a beta of 0.61. Selective Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $80.84 and a 12-month high of $109.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $92.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $92.57.

Selective Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SIGI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by ($0.37). Selective Insurance Group had a net margin of 4.26% and a return on equity of 7.33%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Selective Insurance Group, Inc. will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Selective Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Selective Insurance Group’s payout ratio is 47.21%.

About Selective Insurance Group

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.