Bessemer Group Inc. Lowers Stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Bessemer Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 80.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,985 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 24,665 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in Assurant were worth $1,255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AIZ. LRI Investments LLC boosted its position in Assurant by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 553 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Assurant by 127.1% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 134 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Assurant by 30.0% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 364 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in Assurant by 4.6% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,079 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $436,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Assurant by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,984 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,489,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the period. 92.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AIZ has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Assurant from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Piper Sandler raised Assurant from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $223.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $217.00 price target on Assurant and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Assurant from $224.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Assurant presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $228.67.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Jay Rosenblum sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.93, for a total value of $201,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,775 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,377,725.75. This trade represents a 7.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Assurant Price Performance

Shares of AIZ stock traded up $1.69 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $193.47. The company had a trading volume of 264,316 shares, compared to its average volume of 429,308. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.41 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The company has a market capitalization of $9.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.08 and a beta of 0.59. Assurant, Inc. has a 52-week low of $160.12 and a 52-week high of $230.55. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $197.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $203.02.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $3.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.78 by $0.61. Assurant had a return on equity of 15.49% and a net margin of 5.55%. The business had revenue of $3.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.78 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th were issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 9th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.65%. Assurant's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.94%.

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.