Teacher Retirement System of Texas Buys 20,078 Shares of AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) by 18.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 126,449 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,078 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned 0.66% of AMERISAFE worth $6,517,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royce & Associates LP bought a new position in shares of AMERISAFE during the fourth quarter valued at $15,738,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of AMERISAFE during the fourth quarter valued at $9,708,000. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE by 8.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 811,561 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $39,223,000 after purchasing an additional 63,638 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE by 365.6% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 33,219 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,605,000 after purchasing an additional 26,084 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 661,795 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $34,109,000 after purchasing an additional 21,799 shares in the last quarter. 97.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AMERISAFE Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMSF opened at $51.72 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $985.27 million, a P/E ratio of 16.16 and a beta of 0.33. AMERISAFE, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.97 and a 1 year high of $60.24. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $50.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $51.94.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The insurance provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $73.51 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.37 million. AMERISAFE had a return on equity of 16.50% and a net margin of 19.49%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current year.

AMERISAFE Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. AMERISAFE’s dividend payout ratio is 53.98%.

AMERISAFE Company Profile

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.