Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $229.50.

AIZ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Assurant from $200.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Assurant in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $251.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Assurant from $194.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Assurant from $217.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd.

Assurant Price Performance

NYSE:AIZ opened at $213.22 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $10.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.21 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $213.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $193.49. Assurant has a one year low of $160.12 and a one year high of $230.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. Assurant had a net margin of 6.31% and a return on equity of 17.42%. Assurant’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.29 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Assurant will post 15.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Assurant Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $0.80 dividend. This is an increase from Assurant’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.82%.

Insider Activity at Assurant

In related news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.18, for a total transaction of $627,540.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,658 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,321,240.44. This trade represents a 12.68 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Assurant

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AIZ. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Assurant by 40.2% in the second quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 1,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $315,000 after buying an additional 544 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Assurant in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,294,000. TD Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Assurant by 20.4% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 566,123 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $94,118,000 after acquiring an additional 96,021 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in shares of Assurant by 24.6% during the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 14,043 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,344,000 after purchasing an additional 2,769 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Assurant by 18.2% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 131,599 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,878,000 after purchasing an additional 20,261 shares during the period. 92.65% of the stock is currently 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.