Arete Wealth Advisors LLC Invests $22.27 Million in Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Key Points

• Arete Wealth Advisors initiated a $22.27 million position in Assurant, purchasing 102,248 shares and making it the firm’s 14th-largest holding. Institutional investors collectively own 92.65% of AIZ.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with nine Buy ratings and one Hold rating; Assurant’s consensus price target is $291.43, while several firms recently raised targets to $300–$310.
• Assurant reported quarterly EPS of $5.95, exceeding estimates by $0.66, while revenue rose 11.3% year over year to $3.42 billion. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.88, equivalent to a 1.2% annual yield.

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 102,248 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $22,271,000. Assurant accounts for about 1.6% of Arete Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC owned about 0.21% of Assurant at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AIZ. Amundi increased its position in shares of Assurant by 96.2% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 151,136 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,919,000 after purchasing an additional 74,086 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Assurant by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 600 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $131,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Assurant by 23.1% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 58,828 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $12,813,000 after purchasing an additional 11,030 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Assurant by 17.2% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 79,737 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $17,368,000 after purchasing an additional 11,712 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of Assurant by 83.7% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 74,826 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $16,298,000 after purchasing an additional 34,103 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.65% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AIZ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Assurant from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Truist Financial upped their price target on Assurant from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Assurant from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Assurant in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Assurant from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Assurant currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $291.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Jay Rosenblum sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.77, for a total value of $503,540.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 12,764 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,213,592.28. The trade was a 13.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert Lonergan sold 7,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.71, for a total transaction of $1,838,970.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 27,374 shares in the company, valued at $7,191,423.54. This represents a 20.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 36,000 shares of company stock worth $9,211,620. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Assurant Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of NYSE:AIZ opened at $283.10 on Wednesday. Assurant, Inc. has a 1-year low of $183.39 and a 1-year high of $284.12. 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 stock has a market cap of $14.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.48 and a beta of 0.55. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $265.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $241.76.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $5.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.29 by $0.66. The business had revenue of $3.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.29 billion. Assurant had a net margin of 7.60% and a return on equity of 20.32%. The business's revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $5.79 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Assurant, Inc. will post 21.04 EPS for the current year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Assurant's payout ratio is presently 18.01%.

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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