Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) Stake Lowered by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC lowered its position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 2.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 44,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,245 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.09% of Assurant worth $8,325,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Assurant in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Assetmark Inc. acquired a new position in Assurant during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Assurant by 839.4% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Assurant during the 4th quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Assurant during the 4th quarter valued at about $64,000. Institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on AIZ. Bank of America lowered their price target on Assurant from $223.00 to $222.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Assurant from $182.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $205.00 price objective on shares of Assurant in a research report on Friday, June 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $204.60.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Francesca Luthi sold 6,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.36, for a total value of $1,181,612.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 10,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,895,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Assurant news, COO Francesca Luthi sold 6,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.36, for a total value of $1,181,612.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 10,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,895,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael P. Campbell sold 1,304 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.35, for a total transaction of $226,048.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,586 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,261,983.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 12,788 shares of company stock worth $2,248,489. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Assurant Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of AIZ opened at $174.17 on Monday. Assurant, Inc. has a 52 week low of $133.13 and a 52 week high of $189.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $168.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $173.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.39.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $4.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.87 by $0.91. The business had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.82 billion. Assurant had a return on equity of 20.08% and a net margin of 6.73%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 10th were issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 10th. Assurant’s payout ratio is 20.10%.

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.