Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) Stock Position Lifted by Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 198.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,237 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,488 shares during the quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd's holdings in Assurant were worth $477,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Assurant by 36.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,320,590 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $708,016,000 after buying an additional 891,292 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Assurant during the 3rd quarter valued at $48,430,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Assurant during the 3rd quarter worth $26,630,000. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Assurant by 45.0% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 281,199 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $57,764,000 after purchasing an additional 87,323 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Assurant by 6.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,163,593 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $231,392,000 after purchasing an additional 65,874 shares during the period. 92.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Assurant in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $251.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com lowered shares of Assurant from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Assurant from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Assurant from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price target for the company from $212.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Assurant currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $234.17.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Assurant

In other news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total value of $604,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 17,708 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,568,162. This trade represents a 14.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

Assurant Price Performance

NYSE:AIZ traded up $1.39 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $210.83. 305,430 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 347,315. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market capitalization of $10.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.57 and a beta of 0.61. Assurant, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.12 and a 12 month high of $230.55. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $208.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $206.96.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $4.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.83. Assurant had a return on equity of 17.25% and a net margin of 6.40%. Sell-side analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. Assurant's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.11%.

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.