Schroder Investment Management Group Sells 79,704 Shares of Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Schroder Investment Management Group lowered its stake in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 13.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 517,390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 79,704 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group owned approximately 1.03% of Assurant worth $102,179,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AIZ. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Assurant by 42.4% during the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 1,374 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $288,000 after buying an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Assurant by 19.0% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 22,123 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,640,000 after acquiring an additional 3,540 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Assurant by 312.8% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Assurant by 31.2% in the 1st quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,305 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $274,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Assurant by 35.8% in the first quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 31,669 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,643,000 after purchasing an additional 8,351 shares during the last quarter. 92.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Assurant

In related news, CEO Keith Demmings sold 13,725 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.52, for a total transaction of $3,026,637.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 84,647 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,666,356.44. This represents a 13.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Assurant Price Performance

Assurant stock opened at $228.16 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $218.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $206.75. Assurant, Inc. has a 12 month low of $174.97 and a 12 month high of $232.02. The company has a market cap of $11.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.52 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $2.42 billion for the quarter. Assurant had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 5.83%. Assurant has set its FY 2022 guidance at $13.062-$13.512 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 EPS for the current year.

Assurant Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. This is a positive change from Assurant’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio is 21.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AIZ has been the topic of several analyst reports. Stephens began coverage on shares of Assurant in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Assurant in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $238.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial set a $255.00 target price on Assurant in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Assurant from $255.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Benchmark initiated coverage on Assurant in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Assurant presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $250.00.

Assurant Profile

Assurant, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides business services that supports, protects, and connects consumer purchases in North America, Latin America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates through two segments: Global Lifestyle and Global Housing. The Global Lifestyle segment offers mobile device solutions, and extended service contracts and related services for consumer electronics and appliances, and credit and other insurance products; and vehicle protection, commercial equipment, and other related services.