Inceptionr LLC Makes New $778,000 Investment in Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Inceptionr LLC purchased a new position in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 3,590 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $778,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in shares of Assurant by 606.7% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 910 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Assurant by 19.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 290,759 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $60,987,000 after buying an additional 47,548 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in shares of Assurant in the first quarter valued at about $203,000. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in Assurant by 66.6% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 2,648 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $556,000 after purchasing an additional 1,059 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in Assurant by 57.8% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 183 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. 92.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Assurant Price Performance

Assurant stock opened at $219.76 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $10.92 billion, a PE ratio of 12.95 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $232.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $224.45. Assurant, Inc. has a one year low of $174.97 and a one year high of $246.31.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The financial services provider reported $5.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.55 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.28 billion. Assurant had a return on equity of 18.65% and a net margin of 6.81%.The company’s revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.79 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AIZ shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on Assurant from $255.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Assurant from $232.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Assurant in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Assurant from $248.00 to $254.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Assurant currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $258.17.

Assurant Profile

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.