Versor Investments LP Acquires New Stake in Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Key Points

• Versor Investments LP has acquired a new stake in Assurant, Inc., purchasing 8,744 shares for approximately $1.83 million in the first quarter, highlighting growing interest from institutional investors.
• Assurant reported strong quarterly earnings with an EPS of $5.56, exceeding analysts' estimates, and a revenue of $3.16 billion, up 8.0% from the previous year.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, representing a 1.5% dividend yield, with the next payout scheduled for September 29th.

Versor Investments LP bought a new stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 8,744 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,834,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AIZ. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in 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 acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 766 shares during the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Assurant by 49.1% during the 1st quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 10,187 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 3,356 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted 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 acquiring an additional 1,584 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on AIZ. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Assurant in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $238.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Assurant from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of Assurant in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed a "cautious" rating on shares of Assurant in a report on Monday. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Assurant in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. They set an "overweight" rating for the company. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $233.29.

Assurant Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AIZ traded up $4.40 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $213.54. 372,211 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 447,561. The company has a market cap of $10.78 billion, a PE ratio of 15.46 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $195.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $199.02. Assurant, Inc. has a 12-month low of $174.97 and a 12-month high of $230.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $5.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.43 by $1.13. The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion during 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%.Assurant's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.77 EPS. Assurant has set its FY 2025 guidance at 22.390-22.390 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 EPS for the current year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In other Assurant news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 950 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.96, for a total transaction of $194,712.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $642,549.60. This trade represents a 23.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, 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 transaction of $813,267.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 7,875 shares in the company, valued at $1,642,173.75. This trade represents a 33.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

About Assurant

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.