Short Interest in CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) Grows By 27.2%

CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) was the target of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,340,000 shares, an increase of 27.2% from the February 28th total of 1,840,000 shares. Approximately 2.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 653,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.6 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CNO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of CNO Financial Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on CNO Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $38.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on CNO Financial Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on CNO Financial Group from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of CNO Financial Group from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $41.00.

CNO Financial Group Trading Up 1.2 %

CNO Financial Group stock traded up $0.49 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $42.47. 505,540 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 707,158. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.26 billion, a PE ratio of 11.36 and a beta of 1.02. CNO Financial Group has a twelve month low of $24.92 and a twelve month high of $43.20. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $40.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.25. CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 17.20% and a net margin of 9.08%. Research analysts predict that CNO Financial Group will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current year.

CNO Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. CNO Financial Group’s payout ratio is 17.11%.

Insider Transactions at CNO Financial Group

In other CNO Financial Group news, insider Scott L. Goldberg sold 25,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.02, for a total value of $1,020,510.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 169,342 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,777,066.84. This trade represents a 13.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Yvonne K. Franzese sold 8,109 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.00, for a total value of $340,578.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,618,680. This represents a 17.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 159,512 shares of company stock valued at $6,497,710. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CNO. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 15.3% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,289 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of CNO Financial Group by 51.6% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 955 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 1.7% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 22,647 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $795,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 6,116 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 385 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of CNO Financial Group by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 7,873 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. 95.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About CNO Financial Group

CNO Financial Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, develops, markets, and administers health insurance, annuity, individual life insurance, insurance products, and financial services for senior and middle-income markets in the United States. It offers Medicare supplement, supplemental health, and long-term care insurance policies; life insurance; and annuities, as well as Medicare advantage plans to individuals through phone, online, mail, and face-to-face.