Inspire Investing LLC Raises Stock Position in AMERISAFE, Inc. $AMSF

Inspire Investing LLC grew its holdings in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) by 35.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,914 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,347 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in AMERISAFE were worth $390,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AMSF. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 170.5% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 779 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 491 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 301.6% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,554 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 1,167 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 19.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,600 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $84,000 after buying an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd grew its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 144.2% in the 1st quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 4,696 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $247,000 after buying an additional 2,773 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MQS Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of AMERISAFE in the 1st quarter worth $296,000. 97.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Anastasios Omiridis sold 1,343 shares of AMERISAFE stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.75, for a total transaction of $60,099.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 2,253 shares in the company, valued at $100,821.75. This trade represents a 37.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.61% of the stock is owned by insiders.

AMERISAFE Price Performance

Shares of AMSF opened at $42.15 on Wednesday. AMERISAFE, Inc. has a 1-year low of $40.17 and a 1-year high of $60.24. The company has a 50-day moving average of $44.50 and a 200 day moving average of $45.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $800.43 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.97 and a beta of 0.32.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The insurance provider reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by ($0.02). AMERISAFE had a net margin of 16.46% and a return on equity of 16.54%. The company had revenue of $79.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.30 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AMERISAFE Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th were issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 12th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. AMERISAFE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.09%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on AMSF shares. JMP Securities dropped their price objective on shares of AMERISAFE from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AMERISAFE from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 17th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of AMERISAFE in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of AMERISAFE from $54.00 to $50.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.00.

AMERISAFE 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.