JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Stock Position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 17.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 171,370 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 24,887 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.33% of Assurant worth $34,079,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in shares of Assurant during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Assurant by 62.1% in the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 201 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised its stake in shares of Assurant by 509.4% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 195 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Assurant during the third quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Assurant during the third quarter valued at $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Assurant

In related news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.18, for a total transaction of $627,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,658 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,321,240.44. This trade represents a 12.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

Assurant Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AIZ traded down $0.90 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $206.76. The company had a trading volume of 377,851 shares, compared to its average volume of 296,238. Assurant, Inc. has a 12-month low of $160.12 and a 12-month high of $230.55. The company has a fifty day moving average of $214.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $194.55. The company has a market cap of $10.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.75 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

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

Assurant Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were given a $0.80 dividend. This is a positive change from Assurant's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Assurant's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on AIZ. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Assurant in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $251.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Assurant from $228.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Assurant from $200.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group raised their price target on Assurant from $217.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on Assurant from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $229.50.

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.