8-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the

Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of report (Date of earliest event reported): March 21, 2011

AMERISAFE, INC.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

Texas	001-12251	75-2069407
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation)	(Commission File Number)	(IRS Employer Identification No.)

2301 Highway 190 West

DeRidder, Louisiana 70634

(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (337) 463-9052

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the Registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

¨ Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

¨ Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Item 7.01. Regulation FD Disclosure.

  AMERISAFE, Inc. (the “Company”), a specialty writer of high hazard workers’ compensation insurance, has announced that C. Allen Bradley, Jr., its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and G. Janelle Frost, its Chief Financial Officer, will make a presentation to investors at the Sidoti Fifteenth Annual New York Conference to be held March 22 and 23, 2011. The presentation is scheduled for Tuesday, March 22, 2011 at 9:20 eastern time. The slides attached to this report as Exhibit 99.1 were prepared for the presentation.

  The information in this report is being furnished, not filed, pursuant to Regulation FD. Accordingly, the information in Items 7.01 and 9.01 of this report will not be incorporated by reference into any registration statement filed by the Company under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, unless specifically identified therein as being incorporated therein by reference. The furnishing of the information in this report is not intended to, and does not, constitute a determination or admission by the Company that the information in this report is material or complete, or that investors should consider this information before making an investment decision with respect to any security of the Company.

  The exhibit to this report may include certain statements concerning expectations for the future that are forward-looking statements as defined by federal securities law. It is important to note that the Company’s actual results could differ materially from those projected in such forward-looking statements. Factors that could affect those results include those mentioned in the Company’s 2010 Annual Report on Form 10-K and other documents that the Company has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We do not intend to update these statements unless we are required by the securities laws to do so, and we undertake no obligation to publicly release the result of any revisions to any such forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this report or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits.

99.1 Slides from presentation to be used on March 22, 2011.

- 2 -

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

AMERISAFE, INC.
By:	/s/ Todd Walker
	Todd Walker, Executive Vice President,
	General Counsel, and Secretary

Date: March 21, 2011

3

EX-99.1

Exhibit 99.1

Sidoti & Company, LLC

15

th

Annual New York Conference

March 22, 2011

G. Janelle Frost

Chief Financial Officer

C. Allen Bradley

Chairman & Chief Executive Officer

Forward Looking Statements

Statements made in this presentation that are not historical facts, including

statements accompanied by words such as “will,”

“believe,”

“anticipate,”

“expect,”

“estimate,”

“preliminary,”

or similar words are forward-looking statements within

the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding

AMERISAFE’s plans and performance.  These statements are based on

management’s estimates, assumptions, and projections as of the date of this

presentation and are not guarantees of future performance.   Actual results may

differ materially from the results expressed or implied in these

statements as the

result of risks, uncertainties, and other factors, including the

factors set forth in the

Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including

in Item

1A “Risk Factors”

in AMERISAFE’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended

December 31, 2010.  AMERISAFE cautions you not to place undue reliance on the

forward-looking statements contained in this presentation.  AMERISAFE does not

undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking

statements to reflect future events, information,  or circumstances that arise after

the date of this presentation.

2

3

Market data as of March 15, 2011; Financial data as of December 31, 2010

Nasdaq: AMSF

Market Statistics:

Stock Price

$21.82

52 week range

$15.50 - $22.19

Shares Outstanding

18.2 M

Market Cap

$397 M

Book Value per Share

$17.72

Price-to-Book

1.23

Overview

AMERISAFE has a 25-year operating history as a specialty

provider

of

workers’

compensation

insurance

for

small

to

mid-sized employers engaged in high hazard industries

4

2010 Highlights

GPW: $228.4 million

Combined ratio: 93.3%

Operating ROE: 9.9%

Premium Distribution by State

AMERISAFE

actively

markets

insurance

in

33

states

and

Washington

D.C.

Premium Distribution

5

Premium Distribution by Industry as of 12/31/10

Historical Premium Distribution

of Major Industry Groups

(in $ millions)

150

100

50

0

2008

Construction

2009

2010

Trucking

Agriculture

Oil and Gas

Construction

Trucking

Agriculture

24.1%

6.8%

Logging

4.2%

Other

26.9%

4.0%

34.0%

AMERISAFE Differentiators

6

Focus on High Hazard Industries Niche

Focus on Small to Mid-Sized Employers

Specialized Underwriting Expertise

Comprehensive Safety Services

Intensive Claims Management

Integrated High-Touch Service

High Hazard Niche Focus

High hazard industry workers’

comp rates are more

than 3 times the national average

Difficult to serve industry sub-segments

Less impacted by soft market cycles

Represents a broad spectrum of risk quality; favors

expertise in risk selection and pricing

Higher severity losses require unique claims

handling skills and processes

7

Small to Mid-Sized Employers

1

Competition is fragmented, and favors multi-state writers

of small to mid-sized employers

8

Intensity of Competition

Annual

premium

> $100,000

Annual

premium

$35,000 to

$100,000

Annual

premium

< $35,000

Large Competitors (major national firms);

Represents 3% of AMSF policies;

22% of premiums

Mid-sized Competitors (regional and

smaller national firms);

Represents 19% of AMSF policies;

36% of premiums

Small Competitors (single-state

writers, self-insured funds);

Represents 78% of

AMSF policies;

42% of

Premiums

1

As of 12/31/2010

Specialized Underwriting Expertise

Industry-specific risk analysis and proprietary rating tools developed over 25-year history

Underwriters

have

in-depth

knowledge

of

insureds’

industry

practices

and

loss

exposures

No delegation of underwriting authority to agents or MGA’s

Track record of maintaining pricing discipline and low loss experience

9

1.43

1.53

1.56

1.54

1.51

1.46

1.45

1.43

1.20

1.25

1.30

1.35

1.40

1.45

1.50

1.55

1.60

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Policy Year ELCM

Comprehensive Safety Services

Pre-quotation, worksite safety inspections were performed on approximately

90% of new voluntary policyholders in 2010

Voluntary policies inspected prior to renewal

Detailed safety reports provided to underwriters after safety visits

Field Safety Professionals have in-depth knowledge of our high hazard

industries 

10

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Safety Inspection Ratio

Intensive Claims Management

Field Case Managers (FCMs) located in service areas; visit claimants

personally

On average, only 56 indemnity claims per FCM as of 12/31/10

FCMs focus on timely resolution of claims

11

4,000

4,500

5,000

5,500

6,000

6,500

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Total Open Claims at Period End

Strong Financial Performance

12

-9.2%

13.6%

20.7%

21.0%

11.3%

4.7%

14.3%

15.3%

14.5%

12.1%

9.6%

8.4%

$7.42

$9.23

$11.66

$13.86

$16.00

$17.72

-10.0%

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

$(3.00)

$-

$3.00

$6.00

$9.00

$12.00

$15.00

$18.00

Pre-tax Underwriting ROE

Pre-tax Investing ROE

BVPS

13

Investment Portfolio

Carrying value of cash and

investments was $826.5 million at

December 31, 2010

Investment

Book Value

($millions)

Fair Value

($millions)

Unrealized 

Gain (Loss)

Municipals

$466.9

$479.1

$12.2

U.S. Agency MBS

$62.1

$65.9

$3.8

Commercial MBS

$51.5

$54.1

$2.6

U.S. Treasuries

$14.8

$15.8

$1.0

Corporate Bonds

$60.8

$62.2

$1.4

ABS

$6.4

$5.5

$(0.9)

Long-term CD

$0.8

$0.8

-

Total

$663.3

$683.4

$20.1

As of 12/31/2010, fixed-maturity

securities have an average

composite credit rating of “AA”

Value of Fixed-Maturity Securities

Classified as Held-to-Maturity

(as of 12/31/2010)

Portfolio Allocation

(as of 12/31/2010)

Municipals

56.5%

U.S. Agency

MBS

7.5%

Commerical

MBS

6.2%

U.S.

Treasuries/

agencies

2.5%

Corporates

9.3%

Asset-

backed

securities

0.8%

Long-term

CD

0.1%

Equities

0.2%

Cash & cash

equilvalents

7.4%

Short-term

investments

9.5%

Combined Ratio

14

71.9%

74.2%

79.5%

66.6%

64.7%

60.9%

65.1%

71.9%

27.3%

24.8%

24.7%

23.8%

21.3%

19.3%

21.5%

21.0%

99.6%

99.5%

104.2%

92.4%

85.9%

81.4%

86.9%

93.3%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

120%

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Loss

Expense

Dividend

Current

Workers Compensation

Market Conditions

15

WC Premiums Continue Declines

($ Billions)

P Preliminary

Source: NCCI Holdings, Inc. 2010 State of the Workers Compensation Line

16

0.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009p

Net Written Premium

31.0

31.3

29.8

30.5

29.1

26.3

28.2

26.9

25.9

25.0

28.6

32.1

37.7

42.3

46.5

47.8

46.5

44.3

39.3

34.1

History of Rates/Loss Cost Changes

Source: NCCI Holdings, Inc. 2010 State of the Workers Compensation Line

Cumulative

1990-1993

+36.3%

Cumulative

2004-2010

-26.7%

Cumulative

1994-1999

-27.8%

Cumulative

2000-2003

+17.1%

Calendar Year

*States approved through 4/23/2010

Countrywide approved changes in advisory rates, loss costs, and assigned risk rates as filed by the applicable rating organization

17

12.1

7.4

10.0

2.9

-6.4

-3.2

-6.0

-8.0

-5.4

-2.6

3.5

1.2

4.9

6.6

-6.0

-5.1

-5.7

-6.6

-3.1

-2.4

-1.4

-10

-5

0

5

10

15

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010*

Average Approved WC Bureau Rate/Loss Cost Level Changes

Effect of Recessions* on Payroll

(Workers Comp Exposure)

*Data is an estimate and represents maximum recorded decline over 12-month period using annualized quarterly

wage and salary accrual data

Source: Insurance Information Institute research; Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (wage and salary data);

National Bureau of Economic Research (recession dates).

-4.4%

-2.0%

-1.1%

1.1%

3.7%

4.6%

8.5%

3.5%

2.1%

-0.5%

-3.6%

-6%

-4%

-2%

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

1948-

1949

1953-

1954

1957-

1958

1960-

1961

1969-

1970

1973-

1975

1980

1981-

1982

1990-

1991

2001

2007-

2009

Recessions

in

the

1970s

and

1980s

saw smaller exposure impacts

because of continued wage

inflation, a factor not present

during the 2007-2009 recession

The Dec. 2007 to mid-

2009 recession

caused the largest

impact on WC

exposure in 60 years

(Percent

Change)

(All Post WWII Recessions)

Recession Dates (Beginning/Ending Years)

18

Calendar Year Reserve Deficiencies

($ Billions)

Source: NCCI Holdings, Inc. 2010 State of the Workers Compensation Line

19

Workers Compensation Loss and LAE Reserve Deficiency

Private Carriers

2009 Tabular Discount is $5.3 Billion

Calendar Year

WC Required Returns

Percent

* Based on NCCI’s

2009 Internal Rate of Return model

Source: NCCI Holdings, Inc. 2010 State of the Workers Compensation Line

20

Workers Compensation Combined Ratios for Given Cost of Capital*

Assumptions:

3.4% Pre-Tax Investment Yield

2.7% After-Tax Investment Yield

WC Reserve to Surplus Ratio = 2.05

Cost of Capital

75

80

85

90

95

100

105

5%

6%

7%

8%

9%

10%

11%

12%

13%

14%

15%

103

100

98

96

94

93

91

90

88

87

86

WC Industry Combined Ratio

118%

122%

111%

110%

107%

103%

98%

104%

104%

110%

94%

106%

104%

100%

100%

104%

92%

86%

81%

87%

93%

110%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

110%

120%

130%

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

WC Ind.

AMSF

Workers Comp Underwriting Results Are

Deteriorating Markedly

Sources: A.M. Best; Insurance Information Institute.

21

Investment Considerations

22

Consistent growth in book value

Strong and growing balance sheet

Consistent high returns

Efficient expense structure

Specialized underwriting expertise developed

over 25-year history

Prudent reserving policy

Appendix

23

Selected Balance Sheet Data

24

(in thousands)

2008

2009

2010

Investments, Cash and cash equivalents

799,973

800,485

826,503

Amounts recoverable from reinsurers

67,763

81,878

95,133

Premiums receivable, net

156,567

151,570

122,618

Deferred income taxes

33,580

28,489

31,512

Deferred policy acquisition costs

20,289

18,128

17,400

Total Assets

1,107,833

1,118,809

1,128,134

Reserves for loss and loss adjustment expenses

531,293

534,655

532,204

Unearned premiums

137,100

122,500

111,494

Insurance-related assessments

42,505

40,072

33,898

Subordinated debt securities

36,090

36,090

36,090

Redeemable preferred stock

25,000

-

-

Shareholders’ equity 

253,272

302,417

325,223

Metrics

Book Value Per Share 1

$13.86

$16.00

$17.72

Debt to Capital 1

11.5%

10.7%

10.0%

1 Includes redeemable preferred stock for 2008

Income Statement

25

(in thousands)

2009

2010

Revenues:

Gross premiums written

$256,454

$228,424

Ceded premiums written

(20,158)

(20,549)

   Net premiums written

$236,296

$207,875

Net premiums earned

$250,896

$218,881

Net investment income

28,014

26,242

Net realized gains on investments

2,033

2,449

Fee and other income

1,268

584

Total revenues

282,211

248,156

Expenses:

Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred

163,316

157,388

Underwriting and other operating costs

53,957

45,959

Interest expense

1,810

1,548

Policyholder dividends

770

834

Total expenses

219,853

205,729

Income before taxes

62,358

42,427

Income tax expense

15,927

9,074

Net income

$46,431

$33,353

Return on Equity Drivers

26

Year to Date

12/31/2010

Loss Ratio

71.9%

+

Expense Ratio

21.0%

+

Policyholder Dividend Ratio

0.4%

=

Combined Ratio

93.3%

Underwriting Profit

6.7%

x

Operating Leverage

0.7

=

ROE from Underwriting

4.7%

Pre-tax Investment Yield

3.2%

x

Investment Leverage

2.59

=

ROE from Investing

8.4%

ROE from Other Income (Expense)

0.4%

Pre-tax ROE (tax-equilvalent basis)

13.5%

Effective Tax Rate

21.4%

After-tax Return on Fully Converted Equity

10.6%