M&T Bank Corp Increases Stock Holdings in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 9.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,356 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Assurant were worth $289,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in Assurant during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Assurant during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Assurant by 127.1% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 134 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Assurant by 219.1% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 150 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Assurant by 509.4% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Assurant Price Performance

Assurant stock opened at $211.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $207.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $206.01. Assurant, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.12 and a 12 month high of $230.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.74 billion, a PE ratio of 14.61 and a beta of 0.61.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last announced 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%. Equities analysts predict that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AIZ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Assurant from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $212.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Assurant in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $251.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial increased their price target 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 shares of Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $234.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Assurant news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total value 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 approximately $3,568,162. This trade represents a 14.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Assurant 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.