CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) Sets New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $43.82 and last traded at $43.76, with a volume of 11929 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.55.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CNO. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CNO Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of CNO Financial Group from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of CNO Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $42.00 to $47.00 in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised CNO Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.80.

CNO Financial Group Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.06. The firm has a market cap of $4.17 billion, a PE ratio of 15.29 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 0.18 and a quick ratio of 0.18.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $968.30 million during the quarter. CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.81% and a net margin of 6.64%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CNO Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.83 EPS for the current year.

CNO Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 10th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 10th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CMO Rocco F. Tarasi III sold 9,283 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.60, for a total value of $395,455.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 73,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,149,503.20. This trade represents a 11.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CIO Eric R. Johnson sold 48,665 shares of CNO Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.24, for a total transaction of $2,006,944.60. Following the sale, the executive directly owned 671,542 shares in the company, valued at $27,694,392.08. The trade was a 6.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 3.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 1.4% in the third quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 280,045 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,076,000 after buying an additional 3,959 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL increased its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 16.5% during the third quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 441,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,450,000 after buying an additional 62,615 shares during the last quarter. Cambria Investment Management L.P. raised its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 20.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cambria Investment Management L.P. now owns 16,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $643,000 after purchasing an additional 2,762 shares during the period. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CNO Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $406,000. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 0.6% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 494,955 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $19,575,000 after purchasing an additional 2,950 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.