AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) Trading Down 7.6%

AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) shares fell 7.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $46.76 and last traded at $47.04. 19,599 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 129,783 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.92.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of AMERISAFE in a report on Monday, April 15th. TheStreet raised shares of AMERISAFE from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th.

AMERISAFE Stock Down 10.0 %

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $50.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $49.59. The company has a market capitalization of $876.99 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.45 and a beta of 0.32.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The insurance provider reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.08. AMERISAFE had a return on equity of 17.19% and a net margin of 20.24%. The business had revenue of $73.88 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $75.15 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AMERISAFE Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.23%. This is a boost from AMERISAFE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. AMERISAFE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.82%.

Institutional Trading of AMERISAFE

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMSF. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in AMERISAFE by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,398,263 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $65,411,000 after acquiring an additional 37,048 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 678,321 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $31,732,000 after purchasing an additional 105,414 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado increased its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 301,819 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $14,119,000 after buying an additional 12,433 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE by 70.3% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 178,458 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,348,000 after buying an additional 73,638 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 155,654 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,281,000 after buying an additional 2,856 shares during the last quarter. 97.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AMERISAFE Company 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.