Aviva PLC Sells 20,671 Shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Aviva PLC cut its holdings in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 29.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,031 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 20,671 shares during the period. Aviva PLC owned approximately 0.10% of Assurant worth $10,668,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AIZ. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Assurant by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 5,805 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,155,000 after acquiring an additional 566 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its position in Assurant by 82.0% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,444 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $486,000 after purchasing an additional 1,101 shares during the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Assurant by 5.7% in the third quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,662 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $728,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in shares of Assurant by 198.4% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 41,909 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,334,000 after buying an additional 27,866 shares during the period. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC raised its holdings in Assurant by 19.5% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 2,677 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $532,000 after buying an additional 436 shares during the last quarter. 92.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on AIZ shares. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Assurant from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Assurant from $230.00 to $224.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. StockNews.com lowered Assurant from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised shares of Assurant from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $223.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Assurant currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $234.17.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total transaction 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

Assurant Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of AIZ stock traded up $5.17 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $194.73. 71,730 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 379,271. 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's 50-day moving average price is $204.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $207.19. The company has a market cap of $9.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.46 and a beta of 0.53. Assurant, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.12 and a 12 month high of $230.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $4.79 earnings per share 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%. On average, equities analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.64%. Assurant's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.11%.

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.