Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Decreases Stake in AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans trimmed its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) by 10.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 25,096 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 2,808 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in AMERISAFE were worth $1,293,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in AMERISAFE by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 811,561 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $39,223,000 after purchasing an additional 63,638 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of AMERISAFE by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 661,795 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $34,109,000 after buying an additional 21,799 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of AMERISAFE by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 453,539 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $21,924,000 after buying an additional 6,166 shares during the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP acquired a new stake in AMERISAFE in the fourth quarter valued at $15,738,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in AMERISAFE during the 4th quarter valued at $9,708,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.41% of the company’s stock.

AMERISAFE Stock Performance

AMSF opened at $52.55 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.42 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a 50-day moving average of $50.72 and a 200-day moving average of $52.12. AMERISAFE, Inc. has a 1-year low of $41.97 and a 1-year high of $60.24.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The insurance provider reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.07. AMERISAFE had a return on equity of 16.50% and a net margin of 19.49%. The firm had revenue of $73.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $77.37 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AMERISAFE, Inc. will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AMERISAFE Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. AMERISAFE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.98%.

AMERISAFE 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.