United Fire Group, Inc $UFCS Shares Sold by Hillsdale Investment Management Inc.

Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. cut its holdings in United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ:UFCS) by 11.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 201,768 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 25,500 shares during the period. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in United Fire Group were worth $7,334,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of United Fire Group by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,511,541 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $54,945,000 after purchasing an additional 35,338 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of United Fire Group by 0.5% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,466,752 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $44,618,000 after purchasing an additional 7,230 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of United Fire Group by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 615,052 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $22,361,000 after purchasing an additional 29,679 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of United Fire Group by 20.8% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 419,177 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $12,751,000 after purchasing an additional 72,169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of United Fire Group by 59.5% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 301,076 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $8,641,000 after purchasing an additional 112,318 shares in the last quarter. 62.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Fire Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ UFCS opened at $44.33 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. United Fire Group, Inc has a 52-week low of $25.79 and a 52-week high of $49.94. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $41.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.49. The firm has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.94 and a beta of 0.50.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.29. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 14.65% and a net margin of 9.16%.The firm had revenue of $369.44 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $340.16 million. On average, equities research analysts expect that United Fire Group, Inc will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

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

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 19th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.13%.

Insider Transactions at United Fire Group

In related news, Director Christopher R. Drahozal sold 4,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.49, for a total transaction of $163,582.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 429,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,516,559.37. This trade represents a 0.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Dee Ann Mcintyre sold 4,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.84, for a total value of $165,070.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 437,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,996,888.92. This represents a 0.96% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 12,750 shares of company stock worth $493,723. Corporate insiders own 6.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on UFCS. JonesTrading lifted their target price on United Fire Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded United Fire Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on United Fire Group from $45.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of United Fire Group in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded United Fire Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have given a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, United Fire Group currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.00.

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.