CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) Insider Jeanne Linnenbringer Sells 4,060 Shares

CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) insider Jeanne Linnenbringer sold 4,060 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.73, for a total value of $222,203.80. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 30,128 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,648,905.44. This trade represents a 11.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

CNO Financial Group Stock Up 1.4%

CNO stock opened at $55.33 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $5.12 billion, a PE ratio of 19.01 and a beta of 0.80. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $53.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $47.68. CNO Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.22 and a 52 week high of $57.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.29. CNO Financial Group had a net margin of 6.02% and a return on equity of 18.76%. The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $999.45 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that CNO Financial Group, Inc. will post 4.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNO Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 10th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 10th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.74%.

More CNO Financial Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting CNO Financial Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CNO’s September 1 investor briefing highlighted growth strategies and operating momentum in its worksite and Medicare operations, potentially reinforcing the investment case and helping support the stock’s recent strength. CNO Financial Highlights Growth in Worksite and Medicare Operations
• Positive Sentiment: Management’s discussion of business strategies and growth drivers in the worksite and Medicare segments gives investors additional visibility into potential expansion areas and future earnings support. CNO Financial Group Discusses Worksite and Medicare Business Strategies and Growth Drivers Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Insiders Karen J. Detoro and Jeanne L. Linnenbringer collectively sold approximately 39,213 shares worth about $2.15 million across August 31 through September 2. The sales reduce their individual holdings and could signal profit-taking or create a modest overhang, though both sets of transactions were executed under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans. Karen J. Detoro SEC Form 4 Jeanne L. Linnenbringer SEC Form 4

Institutional Trading of CNO Financial Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNO. Corient Private Wealth LP boosted its position in CNO Financial Group by 2.6% in the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 44,104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,248,000 after buying an additional 1,117 shares in the last quarter. Amundi increased its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 8.8% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 19,141 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $976,000 after buying an additional 1,545 shares in the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in shares of CNO Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $311,000. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 4,851.5% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 5,354,939 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $272,995,000 after acquiring an additional 5,246,791 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CNO Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $304,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.43% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CNO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded CNO Financial Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $53.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen raised CNO Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Evercore set a $48.00 price objective on CNO Financial Group and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on CNO Financial Group from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $56.00.

About CNO Financial Group

CNO Financial Group is an Indiana?based holding company that offers a range of insurance and retirement solutions through its operating subsidiaries. Its primary business activities include life insurance, annuities, and supplemental health insurance products designed to help individuals plan for retirement and manage health?related expenses. The company serves middle?income Americans, with particular emphasis on senior customers seeking guaranteed coverage and reliable income streams.

Originally founded as Conseco in 1979, the company underwent a financial restructuring and rebranded as CNO Financial Group in 2010.