Legal & General Group Plc Takes Position in CNO Financial Group, Inc. $CNO

Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 126,999 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,474,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CNO. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 72.0% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,132 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 75.4% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,133 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 487 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 123.1% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,176 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its position in CNO Financial Group by 39.2% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in CNO Financial Group by 637.4% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,438 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 1,243 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at CNO Financial Group

In related news, CEO Gary C. Bhojwani sold 86,048 shares of CNO Financial Group stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 174,264 shares in the company, valued at $8,971,110.72. The trade was a 33.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Rocco F. Tarasi III sold 5,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $287,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 79,191 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,959,550. The trade was a 6.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 sold a total of 134,319 shares of company stock worth $7,033,335 over the last quarter. 3.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about CNO Financial Group

Here are the key news stories impacting CNO Financial Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CNO’s September 1 investor briefing highlighted growth strategies and operating momentum in its worksite and Medicare operations, potentially reinforcing the investment case and helping support the stock’s recent strength. CNO Financial Highlights Growth in Worksite and Medicare Operations
• Positive Sentiment: Management’s discussion of business strategies and growth drivers in the worksite and Medicare segments gives investors additional visibility into potential expansion areas and future earnings support. CNO Financial Group Discusses Worksite and Medicare Business Strategies and Growth Drivers Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Insiders Karen J. Detoro and Jeanne L. Linnenbringer collectively sold approximately 39,213 shares worth about $2.15 million across August 31 through September 2. The sales reduce their individual holdings and could signal profit-taking or create a modest overhang, though both sets of transactions were executed under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans. Karen J. Detoro SEC Form 4 Jeanne L. Linnenbringer SEC Form 4

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Capital One Financial set a $70.00 target price on CNO Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of CNO Financial Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Evercore set a $48.00 price objective on shares of CNO Financial Group and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $53.00 to $55.00 in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of CNO Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, CNO Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $56.00.

CNO Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CNO opened at $55.33 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $53.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.17. CNO Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $38.22 and a one year high of $57.59. The firm has a market cap of $5.12 billion, a PE ratio of 19.01 and a beta of 0.80.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.29. CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 18.76% and a net margin of 6.02%.The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $999.45 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.87 earnings per share. CNO Financial Group’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that CNO Financial Group, Inc. will post 4.74 EPS for the current year.

CNO Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 10th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 10th. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.74%.

About CNO Financial Group

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.