Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) Sets New 52-Week High at $197.68

Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $197.68 and last traded at $196.51, with a volume of 21701 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $195.63.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on AIZ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Assurant from $186.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Piper Sandler lowered Assurant from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Assurant from $223.00 to $222.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Assurant from $210.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $207.60.

Assurant Stock Up 0.3 %

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $177.01 and a 200 day moving average of $176.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a market capitalization of $10.26 billion, a PE ratio of 13.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.54.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.58 by $0.50. Assurant had a return on equity of 19.63% and a net margin of 6.90%. The company had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.89 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.89 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.54 EPS for the current year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. Assurant’s payout ratio is 20.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.44, for a total value of $103,642.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $593,962.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of Assurant stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.44, for a total value of $103,642.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $593,962.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Martin Jenns sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.13, for a total value of $267,195.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $717,329.51. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AIZ. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of Assurant by 10.6% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,342 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,384,000 after acquiring an additional 1,369 shares during the period. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Assurant by 1,580.9% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,143 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $190,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075 shares during the period. Creative Planning grew its position in shares of Assurant by 428.0% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 7,667 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,275,000 after purchasing an additional 6,215 shares in the last quarter. Scientech Research LLC purchased a new position in shares of Assurant during the 2nd quarter valued at $360,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Assurant by 0.5% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 40,568 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,744,000 after buying an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Assurant Company 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.