Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Boosts Stake in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its position in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 122.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 41,940 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 23,100 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.08% of Assurant worth $8,942,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in Assurant during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Assurant by 127.1% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 134 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of Assurant by 219.1% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 150 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Assurant by 503.1% during the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Assurant by 42.8% during the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 287 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. 92.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Assurant Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:AIZ opened at $192.33 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market cap of $9.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.29 and a beta of 0.53. The business’s 50 day moving average is $200.52 and its 200 day moving average is $206.89. Assurant, Inc. has a 52-week low of $160.12 and a 52-week high of $230.55.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $4.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.83. Assurant had a return on equity of 17.25% and a net margin of 6.40%. Sell-side analysts predict that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.88 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Assurant

In other news, EVP Biju Nair sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total transaction of $604,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 17,708 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,568,162. The trade was a 14.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AIZ has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Assurant from $230.00 to $224.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Piper Sandler raised Assurant from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $223.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Assurant from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Assurant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $234.17.

About Assurant

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.