Atria Investments Inc Lowers Position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Atria Investments Inc lessened its stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 8.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,355 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 217 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc’s holdings in Assurant were worth $502,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in Assurant by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 9,021 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,794,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. boosted its position in Assurant by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 159,880 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,794,000 after purchasing an additional 6,756 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Assurant by 28.6% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 845 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $168,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Assurant by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 171,370 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,079,000 after purchasing an additional 24,887 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in Assurant in the 4th quarter worth approximately $329,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Assurant Stock Up 3.6 %

Shares of AIZ opened at $211.44 on Friday. Assurant, Inc. has a 52-week low of $160.12 and a 52-week high of $230.55. The company has a market capitalization of $10.74 billion, a PE ratio of 14.61 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $207.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $206.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $4.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.83. Assurant had a return on equity of 17.25% and a net margin of 6.40%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 EPS for the current year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AIZ shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Assurant in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $251.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Assurant from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the company from $212.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on Assurant from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Assurant presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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 directly owns 17,708 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,568,162. This trade represents a 14.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.