The board of directors for Lauderdale Lakes-based 21st Century Holding Co. unanimously rejected an unsolicited buyout proposal by insurer Homeowners Choice, Inc. Homeowners Choice offered to buy all outstanding shares of 21st Century for approximately $5.30 per share, or about $40 million. Chairman Paresh Patel called the offer, made in mid-October, “wholly inadequate and not in the best interest of the company’s shareholders.”

Homeowners Choice, based in Clearwater, limits its property and casualty homeowners’ insurance, condominium owners’ insurance, and tenants’ insurance to Florida property owners. The company serves about 53,000 policyholders, representing about $100 million in annualized premium. It recently received authorization to assume 60,000 insurance policies from Citizens Property Insurance Corp.