CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) Raised to “Strong-Buy” at Zacks Research

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on CNO. Capital One Financial set a $70.00 price target on CNO Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Weiss Ratings upgraded CNO Financial Group from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen raised CNO Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $53.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of CNO Financial Group from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CNO Financial Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.00.

CNO Financial Group Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE CNO opened at $55.41 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $5.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.04 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. CNO Financial Group has a 12-month low of $38.99 and a 12-month high of $57.59. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $54.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.91.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.29. CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 18.76% and a net margin of 6.02%. The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $999.45 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.87 earnings per share. CNO Financial Group’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that CNO Financial Group will post 4.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jeanne L. Linnenbringer sold 6,560 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.99, for a total transaction of $360,734.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 34,188 shares in the company, valued at $1,879,998.12. The trade was a 16.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Karen J. Detoro sold 9,374 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total value of $515,382.52. Following the sale, the insider owned 44,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,432,865. The trade was a 17.48% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 47,995 shares of company stock worth $2,641,336. 3.44% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in CNO Financial Group by 156.9% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in shares of CNO Financial Group by 38.4% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 713 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Nykredit A S purchased a new stake in shares of CNO Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of CNO Financial Group by 75.4% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,133 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 487 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of CNO Financial Group by 72.0% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,132 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. 95.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About CNO Financial Group

CNO Financial Group, Inc is a holding company for a group of insurance and financial services businesses focused on serving middle-income Americans, particularly individuals approaching or in retirement. Through its operating companies, CNO provides products designed to help customers protect income, manage health care expenses and prepare for retirement.

CNO’s principal brands include Bankers Life, Colonial Penn and Washington National. Its offerings include life insurance, annuities, supplemental health insurance, Medicare supplement insurance and other insurance products.