UPDATE: Bank of America Downgrades Assurant

According to a research report published this morning, Bank of America has downgraded Assurant

from Neutral to Underperform. In the report, Bank of America said, "Despite an upside surprise in 1Q12, we see increased risk of earnings disappointments driven by pricing pressure in Specialty Property. We are now reflecting premium rate reductions in our earnings forecasts for 2013 and 2014, which leads us to lower our 2013 operating EPS estimate from $6.45 to $5.75 and our 2014 estimate from $7.05 to $5.50. We are now well below consensus for both years and anticipate a decline in EPS during the next couple of years." Bank of America maintains its $45 PO on Assurant, which closed yesterday at $40.57.