CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) Downgraded by Jefferies Financial Group to “Hold”

Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has $55.00 target price on the financial services provider’s stock, up from their previous target price of $53.00.

CNO has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on CNO Financial Group from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Evercore set a $48.00 target price on CNO Financial Group and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CNO Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.75.

CNO Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CNO traded down $1.07 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $51.86. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,044,017 shares, compared to its average volume of 836,131. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.17. CNO Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $35.24 and a fifty-two week high of $53.55. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $48.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.55. The company has a market cap of $4.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.83 and a beta of 0.81.

CNO Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 10th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This is an increase from CNO Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 10th. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CNO Financial Group

In other news, CEO Gary C. Bhojwani sold 86,048 shares of CNO Financial Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.48, for a total value of $4,429,751.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 174,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,971,110.72. This trade represents a 33.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Rocco F. Tarasi III sold 5,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $287,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 79,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,959,550. This trade represents a 6.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 95,106 shares of company stock valued at $4,879,343 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CNO. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 926.6% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 795,165 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,538,000 after purchasing an additional 717,710 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in shares of CNO Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $18,297,000. Jain Global LLC bought a new position in shares of CNO Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $17,996,000. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 190.3% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 579,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,925,000 after acquiring an additional 379,984 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 384.9% during the 3rd quarter. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC now owns 438,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,355,000 after acquiring an additional 348,300 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.43% of the company’s stock.

CNO Financial Group Company Profile

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.