GSA Capital Partners LLP Takes Position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 6,442 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,213,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Assurant by 15.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 638,334 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $91,652,000 after purchasing an additional 85,953 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Assurant by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 181,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,586,000 after acquiring an additional 13,395 shares in the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Assurant in the 4th quarter valued at $126,000. Patton Fund Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Assurant during the 4th quarter valued at $5,382,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Assurant by 279.1% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 179,663 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,271,000 after purchasing an additional 132,275 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Assurant

In other news, insider Robert Lonergan sold 2,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.12, for a total value of $475,524.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 19,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,484,710.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Robert Lonergan sold 2,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.12, for a total value of $475,524.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,786 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,484,710.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Francesca Luthi sold 6,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.36, for a total value of $1,181,612.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 10,748 shares in the company, valued at $1,895,517.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,788 shares of company stock worth $2,248,489 in the last ninety days. 0.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Assurant Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE AIZ traded up $2.21 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $163.82. 54,923 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 354,028. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.39. Assurant, Inc. has a 52-week low of $124.22 and a 52-week high of $189.48. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $170.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $173.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.52 billion, a PE ratio of 11.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.54.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $4.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.87 by $0.91. The company had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.82 billion. Assurant had a return on equity of 20.08% and a net margin of 6.73%. Analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.2 EPS for the current year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 24th. Investors of record on Monday, June 10th were issued a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 10th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on AIZ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Assurant from $182.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $205.00 price objective on shares of Assurant in a research report on Friday, June 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.25.

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.