Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) Holdings Raised by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its position in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 23.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,718 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,209 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Assurant were worth $2,499,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Horizon Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Assurant in the 4th quarter valued at about $332,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Assurant by 36.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,320,590 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $708,016,000 after acquiring an additional 891,292 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Assurant in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,125,000. Dividend Assets Capital LLC lifted its position in Assurant by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Dividend Assets Capital LLC now owns 53,472 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,401,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV acquired a new position in shares of Assurant during the fourth quarter worth approximately $494,000. Institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Assurant

In other Assurant news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total value of $604,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 17,708 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,568,162. The trade was a 14.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Assurant Trading Up 2.4 %

Assurant stock opened at $211.18 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $10.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.59 and a beta of 0.62. Assurant, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.12 and a 12 month high of $230.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $209.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $204.64.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $4.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.83. Assurant had a return on equity of 17.25% and a net margin of 6.40%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio is 22.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Assurant from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $212.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Assurant from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on Assurant in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $251.00 price target for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $234.17.

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.