Granite Investment Partners LLC Has $6.48 Million Holdings in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF)

Granite Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) by 136.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 147,654 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 85,089 shares during the period. Granite Investment Partners LLC owned about 0.77% of AMERISAFE worth $6,481,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in AMERISAFE by 8.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,472,739 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $73,887,000 after acquiring an additional 115,676 shares during the period. Champlain Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of AMERISAFE by 12.8% during the first quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 855,916 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $42,941,000 after purchasing an additional 97,280 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 678,321 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,732,000 after purchasing an additional 105,414 shares in the last quarter. M&G Plc bought a new position in AMERISAFE in the first quarter worth $23,251,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its stake in AMERISAFE by 5.1% during the second quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 315,409 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $13,843,000 after buying an additional 15,196 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on AMSF. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of AMERISAFE in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. StockNews.com upgraded AMERISAFE from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th.

AMERISAFE Stock Down 2.7 %

NASDAQ:AMSF opened at $47.91 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $916.76 million, a PE ratio of 14.93 and a beta of 0.34. AMERISAFE, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.97 and a 12 month high of $54.80. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $48.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $47.20.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by ($0.03). AMERISAFE had a return on equity of 16.38% and a net margin of 18.46%. The business had revenue of $75.83 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $74.20 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.73 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AMERISAFE Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th were issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 6th. AMERISAFE’s dividend payout ratio is 46.11%.

AMERISAFE Company Profile

AMERISAFE, Inc, an insurance holding company, underwrites workers’ compensation insurance in the United States. The company provides benefits to injured employees for temporary or permanent disability, death, and medical and hospital expenses. It sells its products through retail and wholesale brokers and agents; and small and mid-sized employers engaged in hazardous industries, including construction, trucking, logging and lumber, agriculture, manufacturing, telecommunications, and maritime.