United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ:UFCS)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $36.70 and last traded at $36.26, with a volume of 139219 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $35.33.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on UFCS shares. Jones Trading raised their target price on United Fire Group from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Zacks Research cut United Fire Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings raised United Fire Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $30.50.

United Fire Group Stock Up 2.6%

The firm has a market cap of $924.34 million, a PE ratio of 10.33 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $31.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.45.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The insurance provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.81. United Fire Group had a net margin of 6.94% and a return on equity of 11.84%. The company had revenue of $328.43 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $354.46 million. Research analysts forecast that United Fire Group, Inc will post 2.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 29th. United Fire Group’s payout ratio is 15.09%.

Insider Activity at United Fire Group

In other news, Director John Paul E. Besong sold 2,450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.26, for a total transaction of $79,037.00. Following the sale, the director owned 24,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $790,176.44. This trade represents a 9.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 6.12% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Fire Group

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UFCS. Allianz Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in United Fire Group in the third quarter valued at $5,940,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 108.8% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 347,008 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $9,959,000 after purchasing an additional 180,836 shares during the last quarter. CSM Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Fire Group during the second quarter worth about $4,154,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 59.5% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 301,076 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,641,000 after purchasing an additional 112,318 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 76.5% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 252,449 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,437,000 after purchasing an additional 109,453 shares during the last quarter. 62.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.