CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) Hits New 52-Week High Following Earnings Beat

CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) reached a new 52-week high on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $57.59 and last traded at $56.1450, with a volume of 25120 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $53.49.

The financial services provider reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $999.45 million. CNO Financial Group had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 17.65%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.87 EPS.

CNO Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 10th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. This is a positive change from CNO Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 10th. CNO Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 28.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Evercore set a $48.00 price target on CNO Financial Group and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on CNO Financial Group from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $53.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CNO Financial Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $51.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at CNO Financial Group

In other news, CMO Rocco F. Tarasi III sold 5,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $287,500.00. Following the sale, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Gary C. Bhojwani sold 86,048 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.48, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 33.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 95,106 shares of company stock valued at $4,879,343 in the last three months. Insiders own 3.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pzena Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 0.3% during the first quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 2,470,921 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $101,456,000 after purchasing an additional 8,053 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 20.5% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,870,982 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $79,461,000 after buying an additional 317,690 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,492,497 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $61,282,000 after buying an additional 114,000 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in CNO Financial Group by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,218,033 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $51,730,000 after buying an additional 319,795 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in CNO Financial Group by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 988,063 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,570,000 after buying an additional 57,804 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.43% of the company’s stock.

CNO Financial Group Stock Up 4.0%

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $50.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $45.53. The firm has a market cap of $5.19 billion, a PE ratio of 22.47 and a beta of 0.81. 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 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.