Royce & Associates LP Invests $15.74 Million in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF)

Royce & Associates LP bought a new stake in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 305,361 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $15,738,000. Royce & Associates LP owned about 1.60% of AMERISAFE as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 8.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 811,561 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $39,223,000 after buying an additional 63,638 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of AMERISAFE by 365.6% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 33,219 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,605,000 after purchasing an additional 26,084 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in shares of AMERISAFE by 70.6% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 41,299 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,996,000 after purchasing an additional 17,084 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 6.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,882 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $284,000 after purchasing an additional 381 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE by 1,328.5% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,914 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 5,500 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.41% of the company’s stock.

AMERISAFE Stock Up 0.8 %

AMERISAFE stock opened at $51.20 on Monday. AMERISAFE, Inc. has a 52-week low of $41.97 and a 52-week high of $60.24. The firm has a market cap of $975.36 million, a PE ratio of 16.00 and a beta of 0.33. The company’s 50 day moving average is $50.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.88.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The insurance provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.07. AMERISAFE had a return on equity of 16.50% and a net margin of 19.49%. The business had revenue of $73.51 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $77.37 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AMERISAFE Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. AMERISAFE’s payout ratio is presently 53.98%.

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.