Employers (NYSE:EIG) Raised to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Employers (NYSE:EIG) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Employers in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Employers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Employers Stock Performance

NYSE EIG opened at $41.59 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $43.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.99. Employers has a one year low of $35.73 and a one year high of $52.28. The company has a market capitalization of $934.94 million, a P/E ratio of 126.03 and a beta of 0.57.

Employers (NYSE:EIG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.25. Employers had a net margin of 1.26% and a return on equity of 2.10%. The company had revenue of $170.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $217.35 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.15 earnings per share. Employers’s revenue was down 21.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Employers will post 3.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Employers news, EVP Michael Pedraja bought 2,000 shares of Employers stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $39.73 per share, for a total transaction of $79,460.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 19,830 shares in the company, valued at approximately $787,845.90. This trade represents a 11.22% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EIG. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Employers by 126.2% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 329,479 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,224,000 after buying an additional 183,828 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its stake in Employers by 69.9% in the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 388,769 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,783,000 after acquiring an additional 159,956 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its position in shares of Employers by 93.1% during the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 264,078 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,459,000 after acquiring an additional 127,330 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Employers by 326.5% during the third quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 141,611 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,016,000 after acquiring an additional 108,411 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of Employers by 125.0% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 181,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,703,000 after acquiring an additional 100,751 shares in the last quarter. 80.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.