Short Interest in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) Drops By 16.9%

Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) was the target of a large drop in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 769,406 shares, a drop of 16.9% from the January 29th total of 925,510 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 594,666 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.3 days. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s stock are short sold. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 594,666 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.3 days.

Assurant Price Performance

Assurant stock opened at $233.43 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.60 billion, a PE ratio of 13.76 and a beta of 0.58. Assurant has a 52 week low of $174.97 and a 52 week high of $246.31. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $233.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $223.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The financial services provider reported $5.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.55 by $0.06. Assurant had a net margin of 6.81% and a return on equity of 18.65%. The firm had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.28 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.79 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Assurant will post 16.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. Assurant’s payout ratio is currently 20.74%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Assurant

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AIZ. Montag A & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Assurant in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Assurant by 72.6% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Assurant during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Assurant by 65.6% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BOKF NA purchased a new stake in shares of Assurant during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on AIZ shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Assurant from $232.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, November 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Assurant in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Assurant from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Assurant from $252.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $258.17.

About Assurant

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.