Aberdeen Group plc Reduces Stake in Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc cut its stake in Assurant by 61.4% in Q4, leaving 2,912 shares valued at about $701,000, while institutional investors collectively own roughly 92.65% of the company.
• Corporate insiders have been selling recently — the EVP sold 1,880 shares and the CAO sold 750 shares, with insiders offloading a total of 2,650 shares worth $558,331 over the past three months (insiders now own 0.51%).
• Assurant beat Q4 expectations with $5.61 EPS (vs. $5.55 est.) and revenue of $3.35B (+7.9% YoY), pays a $0.88 quarterly dividend (1.6% yield), and carries an average analyst target of $256.83 (consensus: Moderate Buy).

Aberdeen Group plc lowered its stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 61.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,912 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,632 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc's holdings in Assurant were worth $701,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its position in shares of Assurant by 0.3% during the third quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 15,917 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,448,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Assurant by 72.6% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 126 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Cresset Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Assurant by 5.4% during the second quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 1,075 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $212,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Assurant by 65.6% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 149 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Assurant by 4.6% in the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,488 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $322,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Subhashish Sengupta sold 1,880 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total transaction of $395,796.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,895 shares of the company's stock, valued at $609,484.35. This represents a 39.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.98, for a total transaction of $158,235.00. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,650 shares of company stock worth $558,331. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Assurant Price Performance

Shares of AIZ opened at $223.25 on Friday. Assurant, Inc. has a 1-year low of $181.75 and a 1-year high of $246.31. 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 $11.10 billion, a PE ratio of 13.16 and a beta of 0.56. The company's fifty day moving average price is $223.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $225.02.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The financial services provider reported $5.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.55 by $0.06. Assurant had a net margin of 6.81% and a return on equity of 18.65%. The company had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.79 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 EPS for the current year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. Assurant's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Assurant from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Assurant from $252.00 to $264.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Assurant from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Assurant from $248.00 to $240.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Assurant in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $256.83.

Assurant Profile

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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