New York State Teachers Retirement System Reduces Holdings in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

New York State Teachers Retirement System decreased its position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 55,156 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 5,282 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Assurant were worth $9,170,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. HTLF Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Assurant in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $469,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Assurant during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $7,465,000. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Assurant by 24.7% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,271 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $378,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Assurant by 40.1% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 353 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Finally, SteelPeak Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Assurant by 770.1% during the 2nd quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 13,051 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,170,000 after purchasing an additional 11,551 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.44, for a total value of $103,642.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $593,962.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Martin Jenns sold 1,500 shares of Assurant stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $717,329.51. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of Assurant stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $593,962.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Assurant Price Performance

Assurant stock opened at $193.01 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $10.03 billion, a PE ratio of 13.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.54. Assurant, Inc. has a 52-week low of $136.15 and a 52-week high of $193.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company’s 50 day moving average is $172.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $174.91.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.58 by $0.50. Assurant had a net margin of 6.73% and a return on equity of 20.08%. The business had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.89 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.89 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. Assurant’s payout ratio is 20.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler cut shares of Assurant from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Assurant from $223.00 to $222.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Assurant from $186.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Assurant from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Assurant from $210.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Two 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, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $207.60.

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.