Scientech Research LLC Acquires New Position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Scientech Research LLC acquired a new stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 2,165 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $360,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AIZ. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Assurant by 32.5% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,041,678 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $173,179,000 after buying an additional 255,471 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Assurant by 23.4% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 737,099 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $124,194,000 after buying an additional 139,680 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Assurant by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 698,677 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $116,159,000 after acquiring an additional 12,935 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Assurant by 20.4% during the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 566,123 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $94,118,000 after acquiring an additional 96,021 shares during the period. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position in shares of Assurant by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 383,549 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $63,765,000 after acquiring an additional 2,700 shares during the last quarter. 92.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on AIZ shares. 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, August 22nd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Assurant from $217.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Assurant from $223.00 to $222.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. StockNews.com lowered Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Assurant from $186.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $209.00.

Assurant Stock Performance

Shares of Assurant stock opened at $199.95 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.57. The business has a 50-day moving average of $186.48 and a 200 day moving average of $178.04. Assurant, Inc. has a 12 month low of $141.83 and a 12 month high of $201.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 analysts’ expectations of $2.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.89 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. Assurant’s payout ratio is presently 20.10%.

Insider Transactions at Assurant

In related news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of Assurant stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,152 shares in the company, valued at $593,962.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Assurant news, EVP Martin Jenns sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,027 shares in the company, valued at $717,329.51. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was 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. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.