AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) Shares Sold by New York State Teachers Retirement System

New York State Teachers Retirement System lessened its position in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) by 5.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,263 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 500 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in AMERISAFE were worth $448,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Champlain Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings in AMERISAFE by 12.8% during 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 period. M&G Plc bought a new position in shares of AMERISAFE during the 1st quarter valued at about $23,251,000. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado grew its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 315,409 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $13,843,000 after purchasing an additional 15,196 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of AMERISAFE in the 1st quarter worth approximately $821,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC lifted its stake in AMERISAFE by 22.0% during the first quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 2,082 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on AMSF shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of AMERISAFE from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Truist Financial lifted 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 reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of AMERISAFE in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th.

AMERISAFE Price Performance

Shares of AMSF opened at $59.01 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $50.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.55. The stock has a market cap of $1.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.44 and a beta of 0.33. AMERISAFE, Inc. has a one year low of $41.97 and a one year high of $59.50.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.02. AMERISAFE had a net margin of 19.49% and a return on equity of 16.50%. The firm had revenue of $78.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $75.38 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.61 EPS. Analysts anticipate that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current year.

AMERISAFE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a dividend of $3.37 per share. This is an increase from AMERISAFE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $13.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 22.84%. AMERISAFE’s payout ratio is currently 46.25%.

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.