Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Reduces Stock Position in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System trimmed its stake in shares of AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) by 4.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,200 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 400 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in AMERISAFE were worth $445,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in AMERISAFE in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of AMERISAFE by 1,028.4% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 756 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 689 shares during the last quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC grew its position in shares of AMERISAFE by 14.4% in the second quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 76,870 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 9,672 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 97.1% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 822 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of AMERISAFE during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $100,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.41% of the company’s stock.

AMERISAFE Stock Performance

Shares of AMSF opened at $59.03 on Thursday. AMERISAFE, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $41.97 and a fifty-two week high of $59.50. The company has a market capitalization of $1.12 billion, a PE ratio of 18.45 and a beta of 0.33. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $50.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.45.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.02. AMERISAFE had a return on equity of 16.50% and a net margin of 19.49%. The business had revenue of $78.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $75.38 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.61 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AMERISAFE Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a dividend of $3.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $13.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 22.84%. This is an increase from AMERISAFE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. AMERISAFE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AMSF shares. StockNews.com raised AMERISAFE from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on AMERISAFE from $48.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of AMERISAFE in a report on Tuesday, October 15th.

AMERISAFE 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.