Citigroup Inc. Has $14.88 Million Stock Position in Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Key Points

• Citigroup Inc. reduced its stake in Assurant, Inc. by 7.4% during the 1st quarter, selling 5,656 shares and leaving it with approximately $14.88 million in holdings.
• Assurant reported strong earnings, with a quarterly EPS of $5.56, exceeding estimates, as well as an 8.0% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80, with a yield of 1.5%, reflecting a payout ratio of 23.17%.

Citigroup Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 7.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 70,926 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,656 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc. owned approximately 0.14% of Assurant worth $14,877,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AIZ. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Assurant by 21.6% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 93,244 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $19,558,000 after purchasing an additional 16,545 shares during the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board lifted its position in shares of Assurant by 45.4% during the first quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 7,162 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,502,000 after purchasing an additional 2,237 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its position in shares of Assurant by 5.6% during the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 581,411 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $121,951,000 after purchasing an additional 30,629 shares during the last quarter. ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. bought a new position in shares of Assurant during the first quarter worth about $2,248,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Assurant by 5.8% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,224 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,725,000 after purchasing an additional 451 shares during the last quarter. 92.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AIZ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed a "cautious" rating on shares of Assurant in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Assurant from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Stephens began coverage on shares of Assurant in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. They set an "overweight" rating on the stock. Benchmark began coverage on shares of Assurant in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Assurant in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $238.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $233.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Jay Rosenblum sold 3,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 7,875 shares in the company, valued at $1,642,173.75. This trade represents a 33.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 950 shares of the company's 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $642,549.60. This trade represents a 23.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.51% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Assurant Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AIZ traded down $1.91 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $210.60. The stock had a trading volume of 161,716 shares, compared to its average volume of 489,556. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $194.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $198.96. Assurant, Inc. has a 1-year low of $174.97 and a 1-year high of $230.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.25 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.40.

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 the consensus estimate of $4.43 by $1.13. Assurant had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 16.47%. The company had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.77 earnings per share. Assurant's revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

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

About Assurant

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.