Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFT) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFT) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 162,078 shares, a growth of 37.9% from the January 29th total of 117,527 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 75,458 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days. Approximately 1.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Approximately 1.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 75,458 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days.

Insider Activity at Safety Insurance Group

In other news, major shareholder Corp Srb sold 11,487 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.36, for a total value of $900,121.32. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,821,510 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $142,733,523.60. This trade represents a 0.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders have sold 20,954 shares of company stock valued at $1,634,265 in the last ninety days. 2.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Safety Insurance Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Safety Insurance Group by 353.4% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 306,554 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $23,884,000 after buying an additional 238,946 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Safety Insurance Group by 67.9% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 310,072 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $24,617,000 after purchasing an additional 125,398 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Safety Insurance Group by 62.6% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 304,724 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $23,741,000 after purchasing an additional 117,261 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Safety Insurance Group by 224.8% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 139,755 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $9,879,000 after purchasing an additional 96,728 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its stake in shares of Safety Insurance Group by 175.5% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 116,269 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $8,219,000 after purchasing an additional 74,059 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.04% of the company’s stock.

Safety Insurance Group Trading Down 1.0%

NASDAQ:SAFT traded down $0.78 on Monday, reaching $76.85. 36,175 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 73,749. The business has a fifty day moving average of $77.72 and a 200-day moving average of $74.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Safety Insurance Group has a 52-week low of $67.04 and a 52-week high of $84.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.50 and a beta of 0.21.

Safety Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SAFT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The insurance provider reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.23. Safety Insurance Group had a net margin of 7.85% and a return on equity of 9.64%. The firm had revenue of $319.34 million for the quarter.

Safety Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd will be issued a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. Safety Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SAFT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Safety Insurance Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Safety Insurance Group in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

About Safety Insurance Group

Safety Insurance Group, Inc is a publicly traded property and casualty insurance holding company incorporated in Massachusetts in 1994. Its principal subsidiary, Safety Insurance Company, traces its roots back to 1923 and has since evolved into a regional personal lines insurer. The company is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, and trades on the Nasdaq under the symbol SAFT.

Safety Insurance Group focuses primarily on private passenger automobile and homeowners insurance products, along with dwelling fire, umbrella liability, and certain commercial auto coverages.