United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Buy”

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Sunday morning.

UFCS has been the topic of several other reports. Zacks Research lowered United Fire Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of United Fire Group in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. JonesTrading raised their price objective on shares of United Fire Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of United Fire Group from $45.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, United Fire Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $51.00.

United Fire Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UFCS opened at $51.36 on Friday. United Fire Group has a 52 week low of $25.79 and a 52 week high of $54.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.34. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $49.43 and its 200-day moving average is $42.76. The firm has a market cap of $1.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.35 and a beta of 0.51.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $369.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $340.15 million. United Fire Group had a net margin of 9.16% and a return on equity of 14.65%. Equities analysts expect that United Fire Group will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.13%.

United Fire Group announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 20th that allows the company to repurchase 2,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other United Fire Group news, Director George D. Milligan acquired 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $45.23 per share, with a total value of $203,535.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 90,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,072,237.82. This represents a 5.26% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 6.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Fire Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in United Fire Group by 108.8% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 347,008 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $9,959,000 after acquiring an additional 180,836 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP grew its position in shares of United Fire Group by 236.4% during the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 235,925 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,576,000 after acquiring an additional 165,789 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of United Fire Group by 59.5% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 301,076 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,641,000 after acquiring an additional 112,318 shares during the period. UBS Group AG increased its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 79.4% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 211,339 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,429,000 after purchasing an additional 93,525 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of United Fire Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,080,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

United Fire Group Company Profile

United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ: UFCS) is an insurance holding company based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, that specializes in property and casualty coverage for commercial and personal lines. The company underwrites business through three primary segments: commercial, personal and specialty insurance. Within the commercial segment, United Fire Group offers tailored policies for small- and medium-sized enterprises, including general liability, commercial property and workers’ compensation. Its personal lines cover homeowners, auto, farm and umbrella policies.

United Fire Group distributes its products primarily through a national network of independent insurance agents and brokers.