Arete Wealth Advisors LLC Takes Position in Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Key Points

• Arete Wealth Advisors LLC has acquired 3,238 shares of Assurant, Inc. ($AIZ), valued at approximately $679,000, during the first quarter.
• CEO Keith Demmings sold 4,275 shares of the stock in August, representing a 4.16% decrease in ownership, while total insider sales in the past ninety days reached $2.89 million.
• Assurant recently reported $5.56 EPS, beating estimates, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share with a yield of 1.5% to be paid on September 29th.

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 3,238 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $679,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in shares of Assurant during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Assurant during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Private Trust Co. NA raised its stake in shares of Assurant by 192.2% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 149 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in shares of Assurant by 312.8% during the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 161 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Assurant by 47.3% during the first quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 190 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. 92.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AIZ. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Assurant from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Assurant from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Zacks Research raised shares of Assurant from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Stephens began coverage on shares of Assurant in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated a "cautious" rating on shares of Assurant in a report on Monday, August 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $233.29.

Assurant Stock Down 0.6%

AIZ traded down $1.36 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $211.65. 46,453 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 477,461. Assurant, Inc. has a 1-year low of $174.97 and a 1-year high of $230.55. The stock's 50-day moving average is $201.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $199.76. The stock has a market cap of $10.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.31 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $5.56 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.43 by $1.13. The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.13 billion. Assurant had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 16.47%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.77 earnings per share. Assurant has set its FY 2025 guidance at 22.390-22.390 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Assurant's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Assurant

In other Assurant news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 950 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.96, for a total value of $194,712.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 3,135 shares in the company, valued at $642,549.60. This trade represents a 23.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Jay Rosenblum sold 3,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.53, for a total transaction of $813,267.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,875 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,642,173.75. This represents a 33.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,400 shares of company stock worth $2,891,288 over the last quarter. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Assurant Company 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.