Morgan Stanley Upgrades Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) to Overweight

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley upgraded Assurant from “equal weight” to “overweight” and set a $285 price target, implying about 17.6% upside from the current share price.
• Assurant recently beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $5.95 EPS versus the expected $5.29 and revenue of $3.42 billion, up 11.3% year over year.
• Despite mixed analyst actions elsewhere, the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus, and institutional ownership remains high at 92.65%; however, insiders have sold shares recently.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday. The brokerage currently has a $285.00 price target on the financial services provider's stock. Morgan Stanley's target price indicates a potential upside of 17.58% from the stock's current price.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Assurant from $255.00 to $246.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Assurant from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Assurant from $264.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Assurant from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Assurant from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Monday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $272.17.

Assurant Trading Down 0.4%

AIZ stock opened at $242.38 on Thursday. Assurant has a fifty-two week low of $183.39 and a fifty-two week high of $247.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.40 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $224.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $227.73.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $5.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.29 by $0.66. Assurant had a net margin of 7.60% and a return on equity of 20.32%. The business had revenue of $3.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.79 earnings per share. Assurant's revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Assurant will post 20.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Assurant

In other Assurant news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.98, for a total value of $158,235.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,741 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,000,256.18. The trade was a 13.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Subhashish Sengupta sold 1,880 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total transaction of $395,796.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 2,895 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $609,484.35. The trade was a 39.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,650 shares of company stock valued at $558,331. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Assurant

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AIZ. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in Assurant by 606.7% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,060 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $222,000 after purchasing an additional 910 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Assurant by 19.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 290,759 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $60,987,000 after acquiring an additional 47,548 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in shares of Assurant during the first quarter valued at approximately $203,000. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in Assurant by 66.6% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 2,648 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $556,000 after buying an additional 1,059 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Assurant by 57.8% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 183 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. 92.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Assurant Company Profile

Assurant, Inc is a global provider of risk management products and services, specializing in the housing and lifestyle markets. The company offers insurance and related products designed to help consumers protect their homes, personal belongings, and electronic devices. Its core offerings include renters insurance, manufactured housing finance, flood insurance, mobile device protection plans, and extended service contracts for appliances and electronics.

Within its Global Housing segment, Assurant partners with mortgage lenders, financial institutions and government agencies to deliver specialty insurance and risk mitigation services.

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