Engineers Gate Manager LP Decreases Position in Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Key Points

• Engineers Gate Manager LP cut its Assurant stake by 89.3% in the second quarter, selling 33,734 shares and retaining 4,052 shares valued at approximately $1.09 million. Institutional investors still own 92.65% of the company.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with Assurant carrying a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $327.14. Several brokerages recently raised their targets following strong quarterly results, including earnings of $6.41 per share versus the $5.17 consensus estimate.
• Assurant announced a quarterly dividend of $0.88 per share, equal to $3.52 annually and a 1.2% yield. Two executive vice presidents also sold shares, while insiders collectively own 0.54% of the stock.

Engineers Gate Manager LP lowered its stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 89.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,052 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 33,734 shares during the quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP's holdings in Assurant were worth $1,088,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Assurant in the 2nd quarter worth $173,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its stake in shares of Assurant by 956.7% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 14,065 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,777,000 after acquiring an additional 12,734 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Assurant by 12.1% during the second quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,605 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $700,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Assurant by 19.8% during the second quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 1,871 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $502,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Paragon Capital Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Assurant in the second quarter worth about $246,000. 92.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AIZ. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Assurant from $290.00 to $329.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $310.00 price target on shares of Assurant in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Assurant from $310.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Assurant from $274.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Assurant from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and six have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Assurant currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $327.14.

Insider Transactions at Assurant

In other Assurant news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,931 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.46, for a total value of $1,188,970.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,333,747.62. This represents a 13.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Robert Lonergan sold 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 27,374 shares in the company, valued at $7,191,423.54. The trade was a 20.36% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Assurant Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE AIZ opened at $281.81 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $13.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.46 and a beta of 0.54. Assurant, Inc. has a 12-month low of $206.03 and a 12-month high of $303.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $282.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $255.57.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $6.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.17 by $1.24. The firm had revenue of $3.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.43 billion. Assurant had a return on equity of 20.40% and a net margin of 7.90%.The firm's revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.56 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 22.28 EPS for the current year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. Assurant's payout ratio is presently 16.81%.

Assurant Company Profile

Assurant, Inc is a global business services and insurance company that provides protection products and services supporting major purchases and everyday needs. Its offerings are designed to help consumers, businesses and distribution partners manage risks associated with connected devices, housing and transportation.

The company's Lifestyle segment provides mobile device protection, extended service contracts, vehicle service contracts and related services. Its Global Housing segment offers renters insurance, homeowners insurance, lender-placed insurance and other specialty property products.

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