Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $279.50 and last traded at $279.5160, with a volume of 276415 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $279.48.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AIZ has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on Assurant from $270.00 to $274.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Assurant from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $310.00 price objective on shares of Assurant in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Assurant in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Assurant from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Assurant currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $285.71.

Assurant Trading Up 0.3%

The company has a market capitalization of $13.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.32 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $254.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $237.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.39.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $5.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.29 by $0.66. The company had revenue of $3.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.29 billion. Assurant had a return on equity of 20.32% and a net margin of 7.60%.Assurant’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.79 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 21.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio is 18.01%.

Insider Activity at Assurant

In other news, EVP Jay Rosenblum sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.77, for a total transaction of $503,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 12,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,213,592.28. This represents a 13.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total transaction of $511,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 2,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $700,818.88. The trade was a 42.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 36,000 shares of company stock valued at $9,211,620. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Assurant

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Montag A & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Assurant during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC lifted its position in Assurant by 81.4% in the second quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 127 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC bought a new position in Assurant in the second quarter worth $27,000. Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Assurant during the first quarter worth $33,000. Finally, BOKF NA acquired a new stake in Assurant during the third quarter worth $32,000. 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.