Public Sector Pension Investment Board Has $3.17 Million Stock Holdings in AMERISAFE, Inc. $AMSF

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in AMERISAFE, Inc. by 27.2% during the 1st quarter, now owning approximately $3.17 million worth of shares.
• AMERISAFE recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.39 per share, yielding 3.5%, to be paid on September 26th.
• AMERISAFE reported a net margin of 16.46% and revenue of $79.70 million for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF - Free Report) by 27.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 60,368 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 12,895 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned approximately 0.32% of AMERISAFE worth $3,172,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AMSF. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in AMERISAFE in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in AMERISAFE by 301.6% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,554 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 1,167 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in AMERISAFE by 19.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,600 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC grew its stake in AMERISAFE by 336.1% in the fourth quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 3,925 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $202,000 after purchasing an additional 3,025 shares in the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd boosted its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 144.2% during the 1st quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 4,696 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $247,000 after acquiring an additional 2,773 shares during the period. 97.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Truist Financial reduced their target price on AMERISAFE from $54.00 to $50.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded AMERISAFE from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 17th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of AMERISAFE in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $57.50.

AMERISAFE Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMSF traded up $0.67 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $46.89. 95,020 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 105,750. The stock has a market capitalization of $890.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.76 and a beta of 0.39. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $44.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.46. AMERISAFE, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $42.48 and a fifty-two week high of $60.24.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The insurance provider reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $79.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $77.30 million. AMERISAFE had a return on equity of 16.54% and a net margin of 16.46%. On average, analysts predict that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AMERISAFE Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. AMERISAFE's payout ratio is currently 59.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AMERISAFE news, CFO Anastasios Omiridis sold 1,343 shares of AMERISAFE stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.75, for a total value of $60,099.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 2,253 shares of the company's stock, valued at $100,821.75. The trade was a 37.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.