Assurant, Inc. $AIZ Shares Sold by Qtron Investments LLC

Qtron Investments LLC decreased its position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 69.9% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,033 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,398 shares during the period. Qtron Investments LLC’s holdings in Assurant were worth $204,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cresset Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Assurant by 5.4% in the second quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 1,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $212,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Assurant by 5.1% during the second quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 96,858 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $19,128,000 after acquiring an additional 4,739 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Assurant by 99.6% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the period. Menard Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Assurant in the 2nd quarter valued at $235,000. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Assurant by 24.5% in the 2nd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 19,001 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,753,000 after purchasing an additional 3,735 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Assurant

In other Assurant news, CEO Keith Demmings sold 13,725 shares of the firm’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 value of $3,026,637.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 84,647 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,666,356.44. This trade represents a 13.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Assurant Stock Performance

Shares of Assurant stock opened at $222.86 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $219.24 and a 200 day moving average of $207.55. Assurant, Inc. has a 12 month low of $174.97 and a 12 month high of $232.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.56 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.40.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $2.42 billion for the quarter. Assurant had a net margin of 6.75% and a return on equity of 18.61%. Assurant has set its FY 2022 guidance at $13.062-$13.512 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Assurant Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 29th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. This is an increase from Assurant’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Assurant’s payout ratio is currently 21.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on AIZ shares. Stephens began coverage on Assurant in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Zacks Research lowered shares of Assurant from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Assurant in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Assurant from $248.00 to $254.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Benchmark started coverage on shares of Assurant in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.