AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) Stock Bumped Up to Hold by Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Monday morning,Zacks reports.

AMSF has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of AMERISAFE from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of AMERISAFE from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AMERISAFE from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $44.00.

AMERISAFE Price Performance

Shares of AMSF stock opened at $23.87 on Monday. AMERISAFE has a 12 month low of $23.20 and a 12 month high of $43.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $442.55 million, a P/E ratio of 9.62 and a beta of 0.23. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $26.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $30.37.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The insurance provider reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by ($0.08). AMERISAFE had a net margin of 14.00% and a return on equity of 14.87%. The business had revenue of $91.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $85.09 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that AMERISAFE will post 1.97 EPS for the current year.

AMERISAFE Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th were issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.9%. AMERISAFE’s payout ratio is 66.13%.

Institutional Trading of AMERISAFE

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in AMERISAFE in the 2nd quarter worth about $411,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of AMERISAFE during the second quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE by 56.2% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 27,654 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $936,000 after buying an additional 9,949 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of AMERISAFE by 317.8% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 855 shares during the period. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital acquired a new position in shares of AMERISAFE during the second quarter worth approximately $328,000. 97.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AMERISAFE Company Profile

AMERISAFE, Inc (NASDAQ: AMSF) is a specialty workers’ compensation insurance company headquartered in DeRidder, Louisiana. Through its insurance subsidiaries, the company provides workers’ compensation coverage to small and mid-sized employers whose operations involve relatively high workplace risks.

The company focuses on industries such as construction, trucking, logging, agriculture, manufacturing, oil and gas, and other hazardous occupations. Its services include workers’ compensation underwriting, claims administration, workplace safety and loss-control services, and premium auditing.

AMERISAFE primarily serves employers across the southeastern and other selected regions of the United States.