Gotham Asset Management LLC Purchases 28,014 Shares of Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Key Points

• Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Assurant, Inc. by 56.4%, now holding 77,657 shares valued at $16.3 million, according to its latest SEC filing.
• Assurant's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $5.56, surpassing expectations and reflecting an 8.0% year-over-year revenue growth to $3.16 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, with a dividend yield of 1.5%, payable on September 29th to stockholders of record.

Gotham Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 56.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 77,657 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 28,014 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned 0.15% of Assurant worth $16,289,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AIZ. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Assurant by 37.1% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 56,841 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $12,120,000 after acquiring an additional 15,377 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Assurant by 57.7% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 137,712 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,363,000 after acquiring an additional 50,407 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Assurant during the 4th quarter worth $13,070,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Assurant by 1.4% during the 4th 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. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors increased its stake in Assurant by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 6,932 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,478,000 after acquiring an additional 917 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.65% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Assurant from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Zacks Research upgraded Assurant from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Assurant in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $238.00 price target on the stock. Benchmark assumed coverage on Assurant in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, Stephens initiated coverage on Assurant in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Assurant presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $233.29.

Assurant Trading Down 0.3%

AIZ traded down $0.73 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $211.02. 269,649 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 484,231. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.28 and a beta of 0.55. Assurant, Inc. has a 1-year low of $174.97 and a 1-year high of $230.55. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $200.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $199.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $5.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.43 by $1.13. The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.13 billion. Assurant had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 5.83%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.77 EPS. Assurant has set its FY 2025 guidance at 22.390-22.390 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Assurant's payout ratio is presently 23.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 950 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.96, for a total value of $194,712.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,135 shares of the company's stock, valued at $642,549.60. The trade was a 23.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Keith Demmings sold 4,275 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.27, for a total value of $941,654.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 98,372 shares in the company, valued at $21,668,400.44. This represents a 4.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 13,400 shares of company stock valued at $2,891,288. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Assurant Profile

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.