Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) Shares Acquired by Cascade Investment Advisors Inc.

Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Assurant were worth $1,593,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in Assurant during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Assurant by 509.4% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Assurant in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Assurant in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $56,000. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Assurant during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $72,000. 92.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AIZ has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Assurant from $194.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Assurant in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $251.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Assurant from $228.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Assurant from $200.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Assurant from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $229.50.

Assurant Trading Up 2.2 %

NYSE:AIZ opened at $215.62 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.38 and a beta of 0.62. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $215.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $198.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.42. Assurant, Inc. has a 52 week low of $160.12 and a 52 week high of $230.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.48. Assurant had a net margin of 6.31% and a return on equity of 17.42%. The company had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.29 EPS. Assurant’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 15.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.82%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.18, for a total value of $627,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,658 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,321,240.44. The trade was a 12.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Assurant

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.