Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Sells 2,592 Shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 8.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,702 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 2,592 shares during the quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned about 0.05% of Assurant worth $5,693,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Assurant by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 7,469 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,593,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Assurant by 127.1% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 134 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its stake in Assurant by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,699 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,642,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Assurant by 30.0% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 364 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $78,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Assurant by 42.8% during the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 287 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.65% of the company's stock.

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Insider Transactions at Assurant

In other news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total transaction of $604,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,708 shares in the company, valued at $3,568,162. The trade was a 14.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

Assurant Stock Down 8.0 %

AIZ traded down $16.28 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $187.14. 867,097 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 371,825. The stock has a market cap of $9.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.93 and a beta of 0.53. Assurant, Inc. has a 1-year low of $160.12 and a 1-year high of $230.55. The stock's 50-day moving average is $208.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $207.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

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

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. Assurant's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on AIZ shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Assurant from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $212.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Assurant from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Assurant from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $234.17.

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.