Employers (NYSE:EIG) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Employers (NYSE:EIG) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a report released on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Employers in a report on Monday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold”.

Employers Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of EIG stock opened at $43.18 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $970.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.07 and a beta of 0.58. Employers has a 12-month low of $35.73 and a 12-month high of $52.28. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $40.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.53.

Employers (NYSE:EIG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported ($1.10) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by ($1.71). Employers had a net margin of 6.91% and a return on equity of 3.38%. The firm had revenue of $239.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $216.60 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.81 earnings per share. Employers’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Employers will post 3.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Employers Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 12th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 12th. Employers’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.59%.

Insider Transactions at Employers

In other news, EVP Michael Pedraja acquired 5,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $37.09 per share, with a total value of $203,995.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 17,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $661,314.70. This represents a 44.61% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Employers

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EIG. Allianz Asset Management GmbH bought a new stake in Employers in the second quarter worth about $719,000. Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of Employers by 21.8% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 355,041 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,252,000 after acquiring an additional 63,582 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in Employers during the 2nd quarter valued at $390,000. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Employers by 80.5% in the third quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 132,289 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,620,000 after purchasing an additional 58,980 shares during the period. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Employers during the second quarter worth $587,000. Institutional investors own 80.49% of the company’s stock.

Employers Company Profile

Employers Holdings, Inc (NYSE: EIG) is a publicly traded property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. Through its subsidiaries, Employers Mutual Casualty Company and Employers Preferred Insurance Company, the firm specializes in providing workers’ compensation coverage alongside an array of commercial insurance products. Its service offerings include general liability, commercial auto, businessowners policies and umbrella coverages, tailored to meet the risk-management needs of small and mid-sized businesses across multiple industries.

The company markets its insurance solutions primarily through a network of independent agencies and brokers, leveraging local market expertise to underwrite policies that address the unique exposures faced by clients in manufacturing, construction, healthcare, retail and service sectors.