United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) Shares Sold by SG Americas Securities LLC

SG Americas Securities LLC trimmed its stake in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) by 19.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,138 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 2,620 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in United Fire Group were worth $317,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Martingale Asset Management L P increased its stake in United Fire Group by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 44,090 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $923,000 after purchasing an additional 947 shares in the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP boosted its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 21.5% in the third quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 12,860 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 2,278 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 0.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 502,232 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $10,514,000 after acquiring an additional 2,925 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 82.3% during the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 6,864 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $144,000 after acquiring an additional 3,098 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 71,070 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,487,000 after acquiring an additional 3,618 shares in the last quarter. 62.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at United Fire Group

In other news, VP Corey Lynn Ruehle sold 2,664 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.60, for a total transaction of $78,854.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $370,680.80. This trade represents a 17.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 5.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler upgraded United Fire Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $19.00 to $26.00 in a report on Monday, November 18th.

United Fire Group Price Performance

NASDAQ UFCS opened at $24.94 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $631.98 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.86 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $28.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.78. United Fire Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $18.04 and a 52-week high of $31.70.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.60. United Fire Group had a net margin of 4.15% and a return on equity of 6.75%. The company had revenue of $322.96 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $306.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.31 EPS. On average, analysts predict that United Fire Group, Inc. will post 1.84 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.57%. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio is 32.99%.

United Fire Group Company Profile

United Fire Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides property and casualty insurance for individuals and businesses in the United States. The company offers commercial and personal lines of property and casualty insurance; and reinsurance coverage for property and casualty insurance. Its commercial lines include fire and allied lines, other liability, automobile, workers’ compensation, fidelity and surety coverage, and other insurance products; and personal lines comprise automobile, and fire and allied lines coverage, including homeowners, as well as provides assumed reinsurance products.