Lazard Asset Management LLC Purchases Shares of 943 Employers Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EIG)

Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Employers Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EIG) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 943 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $48,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Employers by 312.0% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 365 shares during the period. Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Employers during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Employers by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,680 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $137,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Employers in the 4th quarter valued at about $230,000. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC bought a new stake in Employers in the 4th quarter valued at about $232,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.49% of the company’s stock.

Employers Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:EIG opened at $48.73 on Monday. Employers Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $40.57 and a 52-week high of $54.44. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $48.90 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $50.09. The firm has a market cap of $1.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.35 and a beta of 0.56.

Employers (NYSE:EIG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $202.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $216.81 million. Employers had a return on equity of 8.99% and a net margin of 13.47%. Employers’s quarterly revenue was down 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.67 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Employers Holdings, Inc. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Employers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a boost from Employers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. Employers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.07%.

Insider Transactions at Employers

In other news, Director James R. Kroner sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.90, for a total value of $101,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 25,458 shares in the company, valued at $1,295,812.20. This trade represents a 7.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael Pedraja purchased 3,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $48.59 per share, with a total value of $148,199.50. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $356,164.70. This represents a 71.26% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,385 shares of company stock valued at $276,267 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Employers Profile

Employers Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates in the commercial property and casualty insurance industry primarily in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Employers and Cerity. It offers workers’ compensation insurance to small businesses in low to medium hazard industries under the Employers and Cerity brands.