VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Acquires 4,840 Shares of Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al grew its holdings in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 146.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 8,140 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,840 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al’s holdings in Assurant were worth $1,961,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of AIZ. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Assurant by 23.7% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,010,373 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,085,247,000 after acquiring an additional 959,259 shares during the last quarter. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in Assurant during the fourth quarter worth $36,195,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its stake in Assurant by 205.5% during the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 216,440 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,745,000 after buying an additional 145,600 shares during the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC raised its stake in Assurant by 2,977.4% during the second quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 129,219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,519,000 after buying an additional 125,020 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Assurant by 15.1% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 862,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $186,808,000 after buying an additional 113,235 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Assurant Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE:AIZ opened at $254.26 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.01 and a beta of 0.56. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $225.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $228.21. Assurant, Inc. has a 12 month low of $183.39 and a 12 month high of $257.17.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $5.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.29 by $0.66. The business had revenue of $3.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.29 billion. Assurant had a net margin of 7.60% and a return on equity of 20.32%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $5.79 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 20.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.98, for a total transaction of $158,235.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,000,256.18. The trade was a 13.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Jay Rosenblum sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.77, for a total transaction of $503,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 12,764 shares in the company, valued at $3,213,592.28. This represents a 13.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 4,650 shares of company stock worth $1,061,871 over the last three months. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Assurant from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Assurant from $255.00 to $246.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Assurant from $258.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Assurant from $264.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $272.17.

Assurant News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Assurant this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley upgraded Assurant to Overweight and lifted its price target to $285, signaling confidence in further upside. Morgan Stanley upgrades Assurant (AIZ)
• Positive Sentiment: KBW reaffirmed its Buy rating on Assurant, adding to the bullish analyst backdrop. KBW Reaffirms Their Buy Rating on Assurant (AIZ)
• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital also gave Assurant a Buy rating, reinforcing expectations for continued strength in the business. Assurant (AIZ) Receives a Buy from BMO Capital
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst notes and earnings-call commentary are focusing attention on Assurant’s valuation and growth outlook after a strong quarter. Assessing Assurant (AIZ) Valuation After Recent Share Price Strength And Growth Outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are highlighting questions from Assurant’s Q1 earnings call, which may help investors gauge the durability of recent results. 5 Revealing Analyst Questions From Assurant’s Q1 Earnings Call
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Jay Rosenblum sold 2,000 shares at an average price of $251.77, a routine insider sale that may slightly temper sentiment. Insider sale filing

Assurant 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.