Natixis Advisors LLC Has $4.43 Million Holdings in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in Assurant, Inc. by 7.9% during the first quarter, owning 21,138 shares worth approximately $4.4 million at the end of that period.
• Assurant reported earnings per share of $5.56 for the last quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate of $4.43, alongside a revenue increase of 8% year-over-year.
• A number of hedge funds have significantly increased their positions in Assurant, with 92.65% of the stock now held by these institutional investors.

Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 7.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,138 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,555 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC's holdings in Assurant were worth $4,434,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AIZ. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Assurant by 12.0% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 79,289 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $16,631,000 after buying an additional 8,478 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of Assurant by 192.2% in the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 149 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Assurant by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 6,163 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,271,000 after purchasing an additional 766 shares during the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Assurant by 49.1% during the 1st quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 10,187 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,137,000 after purchasing an additional 3,356 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Assurant by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,034 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,287,000 after purchasing an additional 1,584 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.65% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on AIZ shares. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Assurant from $217.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Piper Sandler raised Assurant from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $223.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Wall Street Zen cut Assurant from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Assurant from $224.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Assurant presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $228.83.

Assurant Trading Down 4.0%

Shares of AIZ stock traded down $8.44 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $201.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 591,762 shares, compared to its average volume of 400,766. Assurant, Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.38 and a 52 week high of $230.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.66. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $193.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $199.28. The company has a market cap of $10.26 billion, a PE ratio of 12.55 and a beta of 0.58.

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

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th were paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 9th. Assurant's payout ratio is 24.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 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 transaction of $201,930.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,775 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,377,725.75. This represents a 7.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

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.