Employers (NYSE:EIG) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Sell

Employers (NYSE:EIG) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Separately, Zacks Research cut Employers from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Employers currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Employers Price Performance

EIG stock opened at $43.47 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $42.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market cap of $792.89 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 131.73 and a beta of 0.48. Employers has a 52-week low of $35.73 and a 52-week high of $48.94.

Employers (NYSE:EIG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $207.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $213.04 million. Employers had a return on equity of 1.10% and a net margin of 0.95%.Employers’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.87 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Employers will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Ann Marie Smith sold 5,000 shares of Employers stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.29, for a total value of $196,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $341,980.16. This trade represents a 36.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christina M. Ozuna sold 4,500 shares of Employers stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total value of $179,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 15,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $598,519.04. This trade represents a 23.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EIG. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Employers by 126.2% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 329,479 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,224,000 after purchasing an additional 183,828 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Employers by 69.9% in the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 388,769 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,783,000 after purchasing an additional 159,956 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its holdings in Employers by 93.1% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 264,078 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,459,000 after buying an additional 127,330 shares during the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Employers by 326.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 141,611 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,016,000 after buying an additional 108,411 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG lifted its holdings in Employers by 125.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 181,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,703,000 after buying an additional 100,751 shares during the last quarter. 80.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Employers

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.