Safety Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SAFT) Sets New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFT) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $103.00 and last traded at $103.00, with a volume of 38868 shares. The stock had previously closed at $72.94.

Key Headlines Impacting Safety Insurance Group

Here are the key news stories impacting Safety Insurance Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Safety Insurance Group agreed to be acquired by Mapfre for $105 per share in cash, creating a strong premium and immediate takeover value for shareholders. Safety Insurance Group, Inc. Enters Into Merger Agreement With Mapfre for $1.54 Billion
• Positive Sentiment: The deal price has effectively become a valuation floor for SAFT, which typically pulls a stock up close to the acquisition value while the market waits for closing. Mapfre to Acquire Safety Insurance Group in Cash Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Several shareholder law firms have announced investigations into whether the $105 cash price is fair, which could add legal noise but does not change the announced deal terms for now. Shareholder Alert: Ademi LLP investigates whether Safety Insurance Group, Inc. is obtaining a Fair Price for Public Shareholders
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent short-interest and insider-trading data do not appear to be driving the move; the stock reaction is primarily tied to the buyout announcement. Safety Insurance Group Jumps on $105-Per-Share Cash Buyout Deal

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Safety Insurance Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday. Wall Street Zen raised Safety Insurance Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 6th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Safety Insurance Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Safety Insurance Group has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Safety Insurance Group Trading Up 41.5%

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $73.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.51 billion, a PE ratio of 24.40 and a beta of 0.21.

Safety Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SAFT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported ($0.72) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by ($2.17). The company had revenue of $314.67 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.01 million. Safety Insurance Group had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 6.31%. Equities analysts expect that Safety Insurance Group, Inc. will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Safety Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. Safety Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 87.00%.

Insider Transactions at Safety Insurance Group

In other Safety Insurance Group news, major shareholder Corp Srb sold 34,272 shares of Safety Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.04, for a total value of $2,606,042.88. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,757,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $133,658,017.32. The trade was a 1.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Safety Insurance Group

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Safety Insurance Group by 74.8% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 388 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Bayban bought a new stake in Safety Insurance Group during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in Safety Insurance Group by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 416 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its position in Safety Insurance Group by 419.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 488 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 394 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Safety Insurance Group by 653.0% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 497 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.04% of the company’s stock.

Safety Insurance Group Company Profile

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.