Insider Selling: United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Director Sells $542,819.04 in Stock

United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ:UFCS) Director Scott Carlton sold 9,777 shares of United Fire Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total transaction of $542,819.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 200,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,134,647.04. This represents a 4.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

United Fire Group Stock Down 1.7%

NASDAQ UFCS traded down $0.96 on Tuesday, hitting $55.02. 217,904 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 132,724. United Fire Group, Inc has a fifty-two week low of $29.74 and a fifty-two week high of $56.74. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $52.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $45.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company has a market cap of $1.41 billion, a PE ratio of 10.26 and a beta of 0.52.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The insurance provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.61. United Fire Group had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 15.19%. The business had revenue of $383.73 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $347.76 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that United Fire Group, Inc will post 4.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Fire Group declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, May 20th that permits the company to buyback 2,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the insurance provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.87%.

Institutional Trading of United Fire Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Globeflex Capital L P acquired a new position in shares of United Fire Group during the 2nd quarter worth $2,301,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in United Fire Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,679,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in United Fire Group by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,511,541 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $54,945,000 after acquiring an additional 35,338 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in United Fire Group by 111.0% during the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 57,647 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,095,000 after acquiring an additional 30,328 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new position in United Fire Group during the second quarter worth about $1,677,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on UFCS. Wall Street Zen downgraded United Fire Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 2nd. Piper Sandler upped their price target on United Fire Group from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Zacks Research lowered shares of United Fire Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of United Fire Group from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Fire Group presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $52.50.

About United Fire Group

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.