Sanctuary Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 2,746 Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 2,746 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $475,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AIZ. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Assurant by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 255,736 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,089,000 after acquiring an additional 19,839 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Assurant in the 1st quarter valued at about $81,000. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Assurant by 14.8% in the first quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 20,846 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,924,000 after purchasing an additional 2,687 shares in the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd bought a new stake in Assurant in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $789,000. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its position in Assurant by 31.1% during the 1st quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 4,865 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $916,000 after acquiring an additional 1,154 shares during the last quarter. 92.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Assurant Stock Performance

Assurant stock traded up $1.35 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $198.21. 359,780 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 349,428. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $192.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $179.13. The firm has a market cap of $10.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.40. Assurant, Inc. has a 52 week low of $144.61 and a 52 week high of $201.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.58 by $0.50. Assurant had a return on equity of 19.63% and a net margin of 6.90%. The business had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.89 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.89 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. Assurant's payout ratio is 20.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Assurant from $200.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Assurant from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America raised their price objective on Assurant from $228.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Assurant from $186.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Assurant from $217.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Assurant currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $214.60.

Insider Activity at Assurant

In other Assurant news, EVP Martin Jenns sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.13, for a total transaction of $267,195.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,027 shares in the company, valued at $717,329.51. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.44, for a total value of $103,642.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $593,962.88. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Martin Jenns sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.13, for a total transaction of $267,195.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $717,329.51. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.