Wall Street Zen Downgrades CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) to Hold

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

CNO has been the topic of several other research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $46.00 price objective on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research report on Thursday. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of CNO Financial Group from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded CNO Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $42.00 to $47.00 in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Evercore restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $43.00 price target on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.50.

CNO Financial Group Trading Up 0.1%

CNO Financial Group stock opened at $39.57 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a PE ratio of 17.75 and a beta of 0.83. CNO Financial Group has a 12 month low of $34.63 and a 12 month high of $44.85. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $41.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.27. CNO Financial Group had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 15.80%. The firm had revenue of $101.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that CNO Financial Group will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at CNO Financial Group

In other news, insider Scott L. Goldberg sold 11,060 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.97, for a total transaction of $442,068.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 214,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,574,524.28. This represents a 4.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Matthew J. Zimpfer sold 33,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.05, for a total transaction of $1,455,090.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 307,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,256,687.85. The trade was a 9.89% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 228,208 shares of company stock valued at $9,762,609 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.38% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CNO. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 102.1% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 45,025 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,914,000 after acquiring an additional 22,749 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 60.5% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 3,248 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $138,000 after purchasing an additional 1,224 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of CNO Financial Group by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 19,683 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $836,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its position in shares of CNO Financial Group by 684.0% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 3,881 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $165,000 after purchasing an additional 3,386 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DGS Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 16.8% in the fourth quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 17,017 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $723,000 after purchasing an additional 2,450 shares during the last quarter. 95.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.