Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) Stock Price Target Cut by Morgan Stanley

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) had its price target dropped by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $320.00 to $300.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price points to a potential upside of 11.70% from the stock’s previous close.

AIZ has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $310.00 price objective on shares of Assurant in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Assurant from $290.00 to $329.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Assurant from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Assurant from $274.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and six have issued a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Assurant currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $324.29.

Assurant Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of AIZ traded up $2.17 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $268.58. The company had a trading volume of 86,905 shares, compared to its average volume of 394,284. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $280.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $259.18. Assurant has a 1-year low of $206.03 and a 1-year high of $303.94. The stock has a market cap of $13.25 billion, a PE ratio of 12.82 and a beta of 0.52.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $6.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.17 by $1.24. Assurant had a net margin of 7.90% and a return on equity of 20.40%. The company had revenue of $3.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $5.56 EPS. Assurant’s revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Assurant will post 22.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Assurant

In related news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,931 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.46, for a total transaction of $1,188,970.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 24,247 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,333,747.62. The trade was a 13.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Assurant

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AIZ. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Assurant by 13.4% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,426 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,725,000 after buying an additional 761 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in Assurant by 41.0% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 1,417 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $381,000 after buying an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Assurant by 26.3% in the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,535 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $949,000 after buying an additional 735 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in Assurant by 9.5% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 4,091 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,099,000 after buying an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in Assurant during the 2nd quarter worth about $173,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Assurant Company Profile

Assurant, Inc is a global business services company that provides insurance products and related services supporting major purchases and everyday needs. Its offerings are distributed through partnerships with mobile carriers, retailers, automotive manufacturers and dealers, financial institutions, housing providers, and other businesses.

Through its Global Lifestyle business, Assurant provides mobile device protection, extended service contracts, vehicle service contracts, and related protection products.