Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) by 2.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 639,996 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,104 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 3.36% of AMERISAFE worth $30,931,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMSF. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in AMERISAFE by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,472,739 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $73,887,000 after purchasing an additional 115,676 shares during the period. Granite Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in AMERISAFE by 136.0% in the 2nd quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC now owns 147,654 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,481,000 after buying an additional 85,089 shares in the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lifted its holdings in AMERISAFE by 13.5% in the 2nd quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 701,806 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,802,000 after buying an additional 83,438 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in AMERISAFE by 70.4% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 114,088 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,514,000 after buying an additional 47,131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in AMERISAFE by 238.6% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 61,946 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,719,000 after buying an additional 43,649 shares in the last quarter. 97.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AMERISAFE Stock Performance

Shares of AMERISAFE stock opened at $58.28 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a PE ratio of 18.21 and a beta of 0.33. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $54.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $48.96. AMERISAFE, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.97 and a 1 year high of $60.24.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.02. AMERISAFE had a net margin of 19.49% and a return on equity of 16.50%. 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 prior year, the firm earned $0.61 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current year.

AMERISAFE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a dividend of $3.37 per share. This represents a $13.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 23.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This is an increase from AMERISAFE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. AMERISAFE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on AMSF shares. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of AMERISAFE in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of AMERISAFE from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of AMERISAFE from $48.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th.

About AMERISAFE

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.