Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) Sets New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $266.90 and last traded at $265.83, with a volume of 394494 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $261.58.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AIZ has been the topic of a number of research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $310.00 target price on shares of Assurant in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Assurant from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $240.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Assurant from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Assurant in a research report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Assurant from $270.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.57.

Assurant Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a 50 day moving average of $247.51 and a 200 day moving average of $235.28. The firm has a market cap of $12.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.36 and a beta of 0.56.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $5.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.29 by $0.66. Assurant had a return on equity of 20.32% and a net margin of 7.60%.The firm had revenue of $3.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $5.79 earnings per share. Assurant’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 21.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.01%.

Insider Activity at Assurant

In related news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 2,000 shares of Assurant stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $511,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 2,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $700,818.88. The trade was a 42.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Keith Meier sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.31, for a total transaction of $6,357,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,552 shares in the company, valued at $4,717,959.12. This represents a 57.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 36,000 shares of company stock worth $9,211,620 in the last ninety days. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Assurant

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AIZ. Ascent Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Assurant by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 5,339 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,286,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Assurant by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 17,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,110,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in Assurant by 27.5% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its stake in Assurant by 0.9% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 5,739 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,250,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Assurant by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $484,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

About Assurant

Assurant, Inc is a global provider of risk management products and services, specializing in the housing and lifestyle markets. The company offers insurance and related products designed to help consumers protect their homes, personal belongings, and electronic devices. Its core offerings include renters insurance, manufactured housing finance, flood insurance, mobile device protection plans, and extended service contracts for appliances and electronics.

Within its Global Housing segment, Assurant partners with mortgage lenders, financial institutions and government agencies to deliver specialty insurance and risk mitigation services.