Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Tuesday.

AIZ has been the subject of several other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Assurant from $186.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Assurant from $223.00 to $222.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. UBS Group upped their target price on Assurant from $217.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler cut Assurant from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and set a $200.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $209.00.

Assurant Price Performance

Assurant stock opened at $199.95 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.39 billion, a PE ratio of 13.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $185.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $177.91. Assurant has a 12 month low of $141.83 and a 12 month high of $201.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.58 by $0.50. Assurant had a net margin of 6.90% and a return on equity of 19.63%. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.89 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Assurant will post 16.54 EPS for the current year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. Assurant’s payout ratio is 20.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Martin Jenns sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.13, for a total value of $267,195.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $717,329.51. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Assurant news, EVP Martin Jenns sold 1,500 shares of Assurant stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.13, for a total transaction of $267,195.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $717,329.51. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.44, for a total value of $103,642.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $593,962.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Assurant

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in Assurant in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Assurant by 62.1% in the second quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 201 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Assurant in the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in Assurant in the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Assurant in the second quarter worth about $51,000. 92.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Assurant

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.