Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Cuts Position in Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd reduced its position in Assurant, Inc. by 78.9%, owning 1,283 shares after selling 4,807 during the second quarter.
• Assurant recently reported $5.56 EPS for the quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $4.43, and its revenue increased by 8.0% from the previous year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 to be paid on September 29, which annualizes to a 1.5% dividend yield.

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lessened its position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) by 78.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,283 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,807 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd's holdings in Assurant were worth $253,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AIZ. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Assurant by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 4,705 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,003,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming lifted its stake in shares of Assurant by 81.6% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 296 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its stake in shares of Assurant by 1,401.0% in the fourth quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 20,939 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,465,000 after buying an additional 19,544 shares in the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. bought a new position in shares of Assurant in the fourth quarter worth approximately $568,000. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its stake in shares of Assurant by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 27,520 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,868,000 after buying an additional 1,711 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.65% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on AIZ shares. Benchmark began coverage on shares of Assurant in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Assurant from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 19th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Assurant from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Stephens started coverage on shares of Assurant in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. They set an "overweight" rating for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Assurant in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $238.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $234.83.

Insider Activity at Assurant

In related news, EVP Jay Rosenblum sold 3,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.53, for a total value of $813,267.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,875 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,642,173.75. This represents a 33.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Keith Demmings sold 4,275 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.27, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 4.16% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 13,400 shares of company stock valued at $2,891,288. 0.51% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Assurant Price Performance

Assurant stock opened at $211.30 on Tuesday. Assurant, Inc. has a 52-week low of $174.97 and a 52-week high of $230.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.30 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $203.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $199.90. 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 released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $5.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.43 by $1.13. Assurant had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 16.47%. The business had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.77 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Assurant has set its FY 2025 guidance at 22.390-22.390 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend 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.

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