Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Analyst Says

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target on Assurant from $258 to $270 and kept an outperform rating, implying about 11% upside from the previous close.
• Assurant’s latest quarterly results beat expectations, with EPS of $5.95 versus $5.29 expected and revenue of $3.42 billion versus $3.29 billion estimated. Revenue rose 11.3% year over year.
• Despite the bullish outlook, the stock was down 0.2% in Wednesday trading, while analysts overall maintain a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $264.67.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) had its target price hoisted by stock analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $258.00 to $270.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "outperform" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' target price would suggest a potential upside of 11.12% from the stock's previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Assurant from $248.00 to $240.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 6th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Assurant from $255.00 to $246.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered Assurant from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings cut Assurant from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Assurant from $264.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Assurant currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $264.67.

Assurant Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE AIZ traded down $0.46 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $242.97. The company's stock had a trading volume of 17,529 shares, compared to its average volume of 398,065. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.44 and a beta of 0.56. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $224.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $227.52. Assurant has a 1 year low of $183.39 and a 1 year high of $247.41.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $5.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.29 by $0.66. Assurant had a net margin of 7.60% and a return on equity of 20.32%. The company had revenue of $3.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.79 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Assurant will post 20.87 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Assurant news, EVP Subhashish Sengupta sold 1,880 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total transaction of $395,796.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,895 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $609,484.35. This trade represents a 39.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.98, for a total value of $158,235.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,000,256.18. The trade was a 13.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 2,650 shares of company stock worth $558,331. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Assurant

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AIZ. WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Assurant by 22.0% in the 1st quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 1,142 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $247,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Assurant by 22.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,125,406 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $245,121,000 after buying an additional 205,767 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Assurant by 21.4% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 386 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Assurant by 7.3% during the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,233 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $486,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Assurant by 19.8% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 435 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $95,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. 92.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Assurant

Assurant, Inc is a global provider of risk management products and services, specializing in the housing and lifestyle markets. The company offers insurance and related products designed to help consumers protect their homes, personal belongings, and electronic devices. Its core offerings include renters insurance, manufactured housing finance, flood insurance, mobile device protection plans, and extended service contracts for appliances and electronics.

Within its Global Housing segment, Assurant partners with mortgage lenders, financial institutions and government agencies to deliver specialty insurance and risk mitigation services.

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