AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) Downgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report published on Friday.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. TheStreet upgraded shares of AMERISAFE from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. JMP Securities restated a market outperform rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of AMERISAFE in a research report on Monday, April 15th.

AMERISAFE Price Performance

AMSF stock opened at $45.56 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $50.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $49.52. AMERISAFE has a 12 month low of $44.88 and a 12 month high of $57.06. The company has a market cap of $872.02 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.19 and a beta of 0.32.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The insurance provider reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.08. AMERISAFE had a net margin of 19.97% and a return on equity of 16.48%. The firm had revenue of $73.88 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $75.15 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that AMERISAFE will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

AMERISAFE Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. AMERISAFE’s payout ratio is currently 46.11%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AMERISAFE

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AMSF. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 132.8% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 35,128 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,762,000 after purchasing an additional 20,040 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 209.8% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,508 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $276,000 after purchasing an additional 3,730 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co grew its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 32.2% during the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 7,361 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $369,000 after purchasing an additional 1,792 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 26.9% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,901 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $182,000 after purchasing an additional 828 shares during the period. Finally, Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 18.4% during the 4th quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 678,321 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $31,732,000 after purchasing an additional 105,414 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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.