United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Cut to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report released on Sunday morning.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of United Fire Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of United Fire Group from $45.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of United Fire Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, JonesTrading lifted their target price on shares of United Fire Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, United Fire Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.00.

United Fire Group Stock Up 3.0%

NASDAQ UFCS opened at $53.66 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.82 and a beta of 0.51. United Fire Group has a 52 week low of $26.23 and a 52 week high of $54.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.34. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $49.66 and a 200-day moving average of $43.01.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The insurance provider reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.61. The business had revenue of $383.73 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $347.76 million. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 15.39% and a net margin of 9.57%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that United Fire Group will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, May 20th that permits the company to repurchase 2,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the insurance provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio is 16.13%.

Insider Activity at United Fire Group

In other news, Director George D. Milligan acquired 4,500 shares of United Fire Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $45.23 per share, with a total value of $203,535.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 90,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,072,237.82. This represents a 5.26% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 6.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Fire Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 108.8% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 347,008 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $9,959,000 after purchasing an additional 180,836 shares during the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP increased its stake in United Fire Group by 236.4% in the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 235,925 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,576,000 after buying an additional 165,789 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in United Fire Group by 59.5% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 301,076 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $8,641,000 after buying an additional 112,318 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG boosted its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 79.4% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 211,339 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,429,000 after buying an additional 93,525 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of United Fire Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,080,000. Institutional investors own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

United Fire Group Company Profile

United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ: UFCS) is an insurance holding company based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, that specializes in property and casualty coverage for commercial and personal lines. The company underwrites business through three primary segments: commercial, personal and specialty insurance. Within the commercial segment, United Fire Group offers tailored policies for small- and medium-sized enterprises, including general liability, commercial property and workers’ compensation. Its personal lines cover homeowners, auto, farm and umbrella policies.

United Fire Group distributes its products primarily through a national network of independent insurance agents and brokers.