Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Boosts Holdings in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 45.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 117,079 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 36,458 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 0.23% of Assurant worth $23,282,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Assurant by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,373 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,200,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Assurant by 121.9% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 8,203 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,544,000 after buying an additional 4,507 shares during the period. WFA Asset Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Assurant in the 1st quarter valued at about $424,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Assurant by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 68,753 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $12,942,000 after acquiring an additional 354 shares during the period. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Assurant during the 1st quarter worth approximately $370,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on AIZ shares. StockNews.com downgraded Assurant from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Assurant from $200.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Assurant from $186.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Assurant from $217.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on Assurant from $228.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Assurant presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $214.60.

Insider Activity

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

Assurant Stock Down 1.5 %

Assurant stock traded down $2.96 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $191.77. 209,294 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 345,911. Assurant, Inc. has a one year low of $145.48 and a one year high of $201.55. The company has a market cap of $9.97 billion, a PE ratio of 13.38, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.57. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $194.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $179.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

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

Assurant Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. Assurant's payout ratio is 20.10%.

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.