StockNews.com Lowers United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) to Buy

StockNews.com lowered shares of United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Thursday.

Separately, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an underweight rating and set a $21.00 price target on shares of United Fire Group in a research report on Monday, April 1st.

United Fire Group Stock Performance

Shares of United Fire Group stock opened at $21.49 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $22.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.99. United Fire Group has a 52-week low of $18.41 and a 52-week high of $25.55. The firm has a market cap of $543.70 million, a PE ratio of -31.14 and a beta of 0.40.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The insurance provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.01. United Fire Group had a negative return on equity of 2.63% and a negative net margin of 1.50%. The business had revenue of $296.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $282.30 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that United Fire Group will post 1.1 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 31st were paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently -92.75%.

Insider Transactions at United Fire Group

In other news, Director Christopher R. Drahozal sold 2,500 shares of United Fire Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.06, for a total transaction of $52,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 449,363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,463,584.78. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 5.99% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of United Fire Group

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in United Fire Group by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 373,607 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,379,000 after purchasing an additional 16,134 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in United Fire Group by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 363,590 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,315,000 after purchasing an additional 27,213 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 111.4% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 178,041 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,516,000 after acquiring an additional 93,810 shares during the period. Foundry Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 158,661 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,192,000 after acquiring an additional 12,815 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 8.2% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 62,592 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,363,000 after acquiring an additional 4,725 shares during the period. 62.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

United Fire Group Company Profile

United Fire Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides property and casualty insurance for individuals and businesses in the United States. The company offers commercial and personal lines of property and casualty insurance; and reinsurance coverage for property and casualty insurance. Its commercial lines include fire and allied lines, other liability, automobile, workers' compensation, fidelity and surety coverage, and other insurance products; and personal lines comprise automobile, and fire and allied lines coverage, including homeowners, as well as provides assumed reinsurance products.