Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) Stake Decreased by AlphaCentric Advisors LLC

AlphaCentric Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 963 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 54 shares during the quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC’s holdings in Assurant were worth $205,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Assurant by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 7,469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,593,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Pathstone Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Assurant by 0.5% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 10,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,006,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in Assurant by 7.2% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 829 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $165,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in Assurant by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 6,919 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,376,000 after buying an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in Assurant by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 7,615 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,514,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. 92.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Assurant Price Performance

NYSE AIZ opened at $202.73 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.46 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.42. The business’s fifty day moving average is $211.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $203.11. Assurant, Inc. has a 1 year low of $160.12 and a 1 year high of $230.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last announced 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 17.42% and a net margin of 6.31%. On average, research analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 15.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.82%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Assurant in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $251.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Assurant from $194.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. StockNews.com cut Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on Assurant from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $231.17.

Assurant 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.