AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) Short Interest Down 12.4% in July

AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) saw a large drop in short interest during the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 225,900 shares, a drop of 12.4% from the July 15th total of 257,900 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 127,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.8 days. Approximately 1.2% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Transactions at AMERISAFE

In other news, Director Michael J. Brown bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were bought at an average price of $43.52 per share, with a total value of $43,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $437,593.60. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AMERISAFE

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Eagle Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in AMERISAFE by 70.3% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 178,458 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,348,000 after buying an additional 73,638 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of AMERISAFE by 18.4% during the 4th quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 678,321 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,732,000 after purchasing an additional 105,414 shares in the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in AMERISAFE by 12.8% during the first quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 855,916 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $42,941,000 after purchasing an additional 97,280 shares during the period. M&G Plc bought a new stake in AMERISAFE in the first quarter worth approximately $23,251,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in AMERISAFE in the first quarter valued at approximately $821,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMSF has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of AMERISAFE in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of AMERISAFE from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th.

AMERISAFE Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of AMSF traded up $0.33 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $47.58. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 71,380 shares, compared to its average volume of 129,133. AMERISAFE has a one year low of $41.97 and a one year high of $54.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $910.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.82 and a beta of 0.33. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.44.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.61 by ($0.03). AMERISAFE had a net margin of 18.46% and a return on equity of 16.38%. The business had revenue of $75.83 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $74.20 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.73 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that AMERISAFE will post 2.4 earnings per share for the current year.

AMERISAFE Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.11%. AMERISAFE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.11%.

About AMERISAFE

AMERISAFE, Inc, an insurance holding company, underwrites workers' compensation insurance in the United States. The company provides benefits to injured employees for temporary or permanent disability, death, and medical and hospital expenses. It sells its products through retail and wholesale brokers and agents; and small and mid-sized employers engaged in hazardous industries, including construction, trucking, logging and lumber, agriculture, manufacturing, telecommunications, and maritime.