Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Buy” Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Monday morning.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on AIZ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Assurant from $194.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Assurant from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Assurant from $200.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Assurant from $228.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Assurant in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $251.00 price objective for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $229.50.

Assurant Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AIZ opened at $215.62 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $215.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $198.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The company has a market cap of $11.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.38 and a beta of 0.62. Assurant has a 1-year low of $160.12 and a 1-year high of $230.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.48. Assurant had a net margin of 6.31% and a return on equity of 17.42%. The company had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.29 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Assurant will post 15.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. Assurant’s payout ratio is currently 22.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Assurant news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.18, for a total transaction of $627,540.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 20,658 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,321,240.44. The trade was a 12.68 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Assurant by 2.3% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 9,021 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,794,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its holdings in Assurant by 4.4% during the third 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 during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Assurant by 17.0% during the third 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. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Assurant by 6.4% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 72,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,370,000 after purchasing an additional 4,317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Assurant in the third quarter valued at $284,730,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

About Assurant

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.