WINTON GROUP Ltd Reduces Stock Position in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS)

WINTON GROUP Ltd lessened its holdings in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) by 10.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 45,609 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 5,202 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd’s holdings in United Fire Group were worth $1,298,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 147.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,380 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $928,000 after purchasing an additional 26,469 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in United Fire Group by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 821,566 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $17,195,000 after buying an additional 17,415 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in United Fire Group by 27.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 99,623 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,085,000 after buying an additional 21,352 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in United Fire Group by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 502,232 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $10,514,000 after acquiring an additional 2,925 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new position in United Fire Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $256,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Christopher R. Drahozal sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.33, for a total value of $70,825.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 441,863 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,517,978.79. This trade represents a 0.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director James Noyce bought 2,000 shares of United Fire Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $26.97 per share, for a total transaction of $53,940.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 27,316 shares in the company, valued at $736,712.52. This represents a 7.90 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 5.99% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on UFCS. Jones Trading upgraded United Fire Group to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $32.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on United Fire Group from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com raised United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th.

United Fire Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UFCS opened at $29.72 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.51. United Fire Group, Inc. has a one year low of $18.04 and a one year high of $31.70. The firm has a market cap of $754.32 million, a P/E ratio of 12.49 and a beta of 0.45.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.64. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 4.94%. On average, research analysts predict that United Fire Group, Inc. will post 2.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.89%.

About United Fire Group

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.