AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) Short Interest Update

AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 319,800 shares, an increase of 91.0% from the February 29th total of 167,400 shares. Currently, 1.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 129,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.5 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, TheStreet upgraded AMERISAFE from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AMSF. Champlain Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of AMERISAFE during the 2nd quarter worth $27,892,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in AMERISAFE by 686.6% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 181,012 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $9,414,000 after acquiring an additional 158,001 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in AMERISAFE by 27.8% during the 2nd quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 679,183 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $35,325,000 after purchasing an additional 147,618 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of AMERISAFE by 32.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 549,586 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,902,000 after purchasing an additional 135,014 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of AMERISAFE by 422.7% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 156,124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $7,642,000 after purchasing an additional 126,258 shares during the period. 97.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AMERISAFE Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of AMERISAFE stock opened at $50.17 on Friday. AMERISAFE has a 52 week low of $45.34 and a 52 week high of $57.06. The company has a market capitalization of $960.25 million, a PE ratio of 15.53 and a beta of 0.32. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $50.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.86.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The insurance provider reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.08. AMERISAFE had a net margin of 20.24% and a return on equity of 17.19%. The firm had revenue of $73.88 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $75.15 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AMERISAFE will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

AMERISAFE Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a $0.37 dividend. This is a positive change from AMERISAFE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.95%. AMERISAFE’s payout ratio is presently 45.82%.

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.