United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts also recently commented on UFCS. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of United Fire Group from $45.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of United Fire Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of United Fire Group in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, JonesTrading increased their price target 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.00.

United Fire Group Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:UFCS opened at $52.52 on Monday. 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 has a 52-week low of $25.79 and a 52-week high of $54.42. The stock has a market cap of $1.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.59 and a beta of 0.50. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $47.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.87.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 $340.15 million. Equities analysts predict that United Fire Group will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 20th that permits the company to repurchase 2,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the insurance provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Fire Group

In other news, Director George D. Milligan acquired 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $45.23 per share, for a total transaction of $203,535.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 90,034 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,072,237.82. The trade was a 5.26% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 6.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of United Fire Group

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of UFCS. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in United Fire Group by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,511,541 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $54,945,000 after acquiring an additional 35,338 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in United Fire Group during the fourth quarter worth $1,524,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in United Fire Group by 111.0% during the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 57,647 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,095,000 after purchasing an additional 30,328 shares in the last quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Fire Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $487,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of United Fire Group by 320.9% in the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 50,925 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,851,000 after purchasing an additional 38,825 shares during the period. 62.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.