Royal Bank of Canada Sells 8,895 Shares of Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada reduced its stock position in Assurant, Inc. by 9.3% in the first quarter, owning about 0.17% of the company after selling 8,895 shares.
• Assurant's recent quarterly earnings exceeded expectations, with an EPS of $5.56 compared to the consensus estimate of $4.43, and the company has forecasted an EPS of 16.88 for the current fiscal year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, which reflects a 1.5% annual yield and a payout ratio of 23.17%.

Royal Bank of Canada lessened its stake in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 9.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 86,350 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 8,895 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned about 0.17% of Assurant worth $18,112,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. raised its holdings in Assurant by 47.3% during the first quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 190 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC raised its holdings in Assurant by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 553 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Assurant by 1.6% during the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,745 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $995,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Forte Capital LLC ADV raised its holdings in Assurant by 5.2% during the first quarter. Forte Capital LLC ADV now owns 1,620 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $340,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank raised its holdings in Assurant by 0.9% during the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 9,918 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,080,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.65% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on AIZ shares. Benchmark initiated coverage on Assurant in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Assurant in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $238.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised Assurant from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Stephens initiated coverage on Assurant in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. They set an "overweight" rating on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued a "cautious" rating on shares of Assurant in a research report on Monday, August 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $233.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Jay Rosenblum sold 3,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.53, for a total transaction of $813,267.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,875 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,642,173.75. This represents a 33.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Keith Demmings sold 4,275 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.27, for a total value of $941,654.25. Following the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,400 shares of company stock valued at $2,891,288 over the last 90 days. 0.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Assurant Stock Performance

Shares of Assurant stock traded down $4.65 on Monday, hitting $208.36. The stock had a trading volume of 273,705 shares, compared to its average volume of 365,000. Assurant, Inc. has a twelve month low of $174.97 and a twelve month high of $230.55. The business's 50 day moving average is $201.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $199.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock has a market cap of $10.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.09 and a beta of 0.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 5.83%.The company had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.77 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Assurant has set its FY 2025 guidance at 22.390-22.390 EPS. Analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 EPS for the current year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

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

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.