Intact Investment Management Inc. Reduces Stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Intact Investment Management Inc. lowered its position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 16.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 60 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Assurant were worth $64,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AIZ. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in Assurant in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in Assurant in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Assurant by 127.1% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 134 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in Assurant by 219.1% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 150 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank boosted its position in Assurant by 509.4% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Assurant

In related news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,708 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,568,162. This represents a 14.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Assurant Trading Up 3.6 %

Shares of NYSE:AIZ opened at $211.44 on Friday. Assurant, Inc. has a 1 year low of $160.12 and a 1 year high of $230.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.61 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $207.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $206.09.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $4.79 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%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Assurant Company 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.