AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $60.24 and last traded at $59.22, with a volume of 12932 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $59.52.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AMSF. StockNews.com raised AMERISAFE from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Truist Financial raised their target price on AMERISAFE from $48.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of AMERISAFE in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th.

AMERISAFE Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $50.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.62. The firm has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a PE ratio of 18.64 and a beta of 0.33.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.02. AMERISAFE had a return on equity of 16.50% and a net margin of 19.49%. The business had revenue of $78.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $75.38 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.61 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AMERISAFE Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a dividend of $3.37 per share. This represents a $13.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 22.59%. This is a boost from AMERISAFE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. AMERISAFE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.25%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in AMERISAFE by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,472,739 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $73,887,000 after purchasing an additional 115,676 shares in the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE by 12.8% in the first quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 855,916 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $42,941,000 after acquiring an additional 97,280 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of AMERISAFE by 13.5% in the 2nd quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 701,806 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,802,000 after purchasing an additional 83,438 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 2.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 639,996 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,931,000 after purchasing an additional 14,104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&G Plc purchased a new position in AMERISAFE in the first quarter valued at approximately $23,251,000. Institutional investors own 97.41% of the company’s stock.

AMERISAFE Company Profile

AMERISAFE, Inc, an insurance holding company, underwrites workers’ compensation insurance in the United States. The company provides benefits to injured employees for temporary or permanent disability, death, and medical and hospital expenses. It sells its products through retail and wholesale brokers and agents; and small and mid-sized employers engaged in hazardous industries, including construction, trucking, logging and lumber, agriculture, manufacturing, telecommunications, and maritime.