AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) Declares Dividend Increase – $3.37 Per Share

AMERISAFE, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMSF) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, October 23rd, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a dividend of 3.37 per share by the insurance provider on Friday, December 13th. This represents a $13.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 24.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This is a positive change from AMERISAFE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37.

AMERISAFE has raised its dividend payment by an average of 8.0% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 11 consecutive years. AMERISAFE has a payout ratio of 64.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect AMERISAFE to earn $2.10 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.48 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 70.5%.

AMERISAFE Stock Up 10.6 %

Shares of AMERISAFE stock opened at $56.17 on Friday. AMERISAFE has a 52 week low of $41.97 and a 52 week high of $56.43. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $49.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.05. The company has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.50 and a beta of 0.34.

AMERISAFE (NASDAQ:AMSF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.02. AMERISAFE had a net margin of 18.46% and a return on equity of 16.38%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.61 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that AMERISAFE will post 2.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of AMERISAFE in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com raised AMERISAFE from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th.

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.