Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Sells 1,500 Shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lessened its holdings in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,014 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,500 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund owned about 0.05% of Assurant worth $5,760,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in Assurant during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Assurant during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Huntington National Bank raised its position in shares of Assurant by 509.4% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Assurant during the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Assurant in the third quarter worth $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Assurant Price Performance

AIZ opened at $202.64 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $210.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $204.15. The firm has a market cap of $10.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.00 and a beta of 0.62. Assurant, Inc. has a 1 year low of $160.12 and a 1 year high of $230.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $4.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts predict that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. Assurant’s payout ratio is 22.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total transaction of $604,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 17,708 shares in the company, valued at $3,568,162. This represents a 14.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.