Foundry Partners LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS)

Foundry Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) by 71.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 178,155 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 74,540 shares during the period. Foundry Partners LLC owned 0.70% of United Fire Group worth $3,729,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in United Fire Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $65,000. Lion Street Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in United Fire Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $201,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC purchased a new stake in United Fire Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $202,000. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in United Fire Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $213,000. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC purchased a new stake in United Fire Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $223,000. 62.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UFCS has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com upgraded United Fire Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Piper Sandler upgraded United Fire Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the company from $19.00 to $26.00 in a research report on Monday.

United Fire Group Price Performance

UFCS stock opened at $29.66 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $751.58 million, a PE ratio of 15.29 and a beta of 0.37. United Fire Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.04 and a 1 year high of $29.77.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.60. The business had revenue of $322.96 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $306.80 million. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 6.75% and a net margin of 4.15%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.31 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that United Fire Group, Inc. will post 1.1 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. United Fire Group’s payout ratio is 32.99%.

United Fire Group 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.