United Fire Group, Inc $UFCS Holdings Lifted by Los Angeles Capital Management LLC

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ:UFCS) by 28.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 45,602 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,055 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned about 0.18% of United Fire Group worth $1,309,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 76.5% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 252,449 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $7,437,000 after purchasing an additional 109,453 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in United Fire Group in the first quarter worth approximately $2,652,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 79.6% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 188,758 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,561,000 after buying an additional 83,654 shares in the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 90.4% during the 1st quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 119,091 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,508,000 after acquiring an additional 56,543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of United Fire Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,589,000. Institutional investors own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Fire Group

In related news, Director John Paul E. Besong sold 2,450 shares of United Fire Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.26, for a total value of $79,037.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 24,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $790,176.44. The trade was a 9.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 6.12% of the company’s stock.

United Fire Group Price Performance

UFCS opened at $37.03 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $31.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. United Fire Group, Inc has a 1 year low of $24.11 and a 1 year high of $37.33. The stock has a market cap of $944.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.55 and a beta of 0.49.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The insurance provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.81. The company had revenue of $328.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $354.46 million. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 11.84% and a net margin of 6.94%. Analysts forecast that United Fire Group, Inc will post 2.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th were paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio is 15.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research lowered United Fire Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of United Fire Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Jones Trading lifted their target price on shares of United Fire Group from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $33.00.

United Fire Group Profile

United Fire Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides property and casualty insurance for individuals and businesses in the United States. The company offers commercial and personal lines of property and casualty insurance; and reinsurance coverage for property and casualty insurance. Its commercial lines include fire and allied lines, other liability, automobile, workers’ compensation, fidelity and surety coverage, and other insurance products; and personal lines comprise automobile, and fire and allied lines coverage, including homeowners, as well as provides assumed reinsurance products.