Diversified Trust Co Increases Position in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF)

Diversified Trust Co increased its stake in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) by 32.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,361 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,792 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co’s holdings in AMERISAFE were worth $369,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Eagle Asset Management Inc. grew its position in AMERISAFE by 70.3% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 178,458 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $8,348,000 after acquiring an additional 73,638 shares in the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its position in AMERISAFE by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 678,321 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,732,000 after buying an additional 105,414 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in AMERISAFE during the third quarter valued at about $1,962,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in AMERISAFE by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,680 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $406,000 after buying an additional 700 shares during the period. Finally, MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in AMERISAFE during the fourth quarter valued at about $232,000. 97.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Michael J. Brown purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $43.52 per share, with a total value of $43,520.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,055 shares in the company, valued at $437,593.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on AMSF shares. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of AMERISAFE in a research report on Monday, April 15th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of AMERISAFE from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th.

AMERISAFE Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMSF opened at $43.41 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $830.65 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.52 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $44.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.51. AMERISAFE, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.97 and a 12 month high of $56.54.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The insurance provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $80.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $75.22 million. AMERISAFE had a net margin of 19.97% and a return on equity of 16.76%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AMERISAFE Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. AMERISAFE’s payout ratio is currently 46.11%.

About AMERISAFE

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.