CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $53.67 and last traded at $53.6280, with a volume of 28014 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $52.75.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CNO has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Evercore set a $48.00 price target on CNO Financial Group and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on CNO Financial Group from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Jefferies Financial Group cut CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $53.00 to $55.00 in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, CNO Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.50.

CNO Financial Group Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $5.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.51 and a beta of 0.81. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $44.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.17.

CNO Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 10th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This is a boost from CNO Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 10th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CNO Financial Group news, CMO Rocco F. Tarasi III sold 5,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $287,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 79,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,959,550. The trade was a 6.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Gary C. Bhojwani sold 86,048 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.48, for a total value of $4,429,751.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 174,264 shares in the company, valued at $8,971,110.72. The trade was a 33.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 95,106 shares of company stock valued at $4,879,343 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 11.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 882,512 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,903,000 after acquiring an additional 91,417 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in CNO Financial Group in the first quarter worth about $1,125,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 83.4% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 35,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,503,000 after purchasing an additional 16,092 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 102.1% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 45,025 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,914,000 after purchasing an additional 22,749 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL lifted its position in CNO Financial Group by 16.5% during the 3rd quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 441,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,450,000 after purchasing an additional 62,615 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.