Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC Trims Position in Assurant, Inc. $AIZ

Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC cut its stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 79.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,445 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 120,113 shares during the quarter. Assurant comprises about 1.1% of Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Assurant were worth $6,811,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Assurant by 72.6% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC bought a new stake in shares of Assurant during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. REAP Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Assurant by 193.9% in the 2nd quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 144 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its stake in shares of Assurant by 1,133.3% in the 2nd quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Assurant during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Assurant Stock Performance

AIZ stock opened at $238.45 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $232.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $216.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Assurant, Inc. has a 12-month low of $174.97 and a 12-month high of $243.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.94 billion, a PE ratio of 14.51 and a beta of 0.56.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The financial services provider reported $5.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.23 by $1.50. The firm had revenue of $3.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.15 billion. Assurant had a return on equity of 18.61% and a net margin of 6.75%.The company’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.00 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. This is an increase from Assurant’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Assurant from $232.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. UBS Group upped their price target on Assurant from $255.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Truist Financial set a $255.00 price objective on Assurant in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Assurant from $252.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Assurant from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $252.67.

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.