Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold”

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on AIZ. Bank of America cut their price target on Assurant from $223.00 to $222.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Assurant from $217.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Assurant from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Assurant from $186.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Assurant has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $209.00.

Assurant Stock Performance

NYSE:AIZ traded down $0.79 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $197.31. The stock had a trading volume of 317,042 shares, compared to its average volume of 351,602. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.77, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.57. Assurant has a 1-year low of $141.83 and a 1-year high of $199.50. 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 firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $184.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $177.63.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 EPS 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 company posted $3.89 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Assurant will post 16.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Assurant news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.44, for a total transaction 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 filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Assurant news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,152 shares in the company, valued at $593,962.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 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 $717,329.51. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Assurant

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Assurant in the second quarter worth $31,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in Assurant by 62.1% during the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 201 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. bought a new stake in Assurant during the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Assurant in the 4th quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in shares of Assurant in the second quarter worth about $51,000. 92.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.