Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) Short Interest Up 19.4% in December

Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 834,000 shares, a growth of 19.4% from the December 15th total of 698,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 348,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.4 days. Currently, 1.6% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on AIZ shares. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Assurant in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $251.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Assurant from $200.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Bank of America increased their price target on Assurant from $228.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Assurant from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Assurant from $217.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Assurant has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $229.50.

Assurant Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AIZ traded down $0.29 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $211.39. 345,470 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 281,810. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $215.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $196.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.08 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Assurant has a 12 month low of $160.12 and a 12 month high of $230.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.48. Assurant had a return on equity of 17.42% and a net margin of 6.31%. The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.94 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.29 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Assurant will post 15.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Assurant

In other Assurant news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.18, for a total value of $627,540.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,658 shares in the company, valued at $4,321,240.44. The trade was a 12.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in shares of Assurant in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in Assurant by 62.1% in the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 201 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its stake 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 buying an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Assurant in the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Assurant during the 3rd quarter valued at $56,000. 92.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.