Insider Buying: United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) SVP Buys 2,500 Shares of Stock

United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) SVP Micah G. Woolstenhulme purchased 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $19.20 per share, with a total value of $48,000.00. Following the purchase, the senior vice president now owns 39,940 shares in the company, valued at $766,848. This trade represents a 6.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

United Fire Group Stock Up 1.7 %

UFCS stock traded up $0.46 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $26.96. The company had a trading volume of 75,209 shares, compared to its average volume of 157,883. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $28.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $23.33. United Fire Group, Inc. has a one year low of $18.04 and a one year high of $31.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $683.17 million, a P/E ratio of 13.91 and a beta of 0.54.

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

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.37%. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.99%.

Institutional Trading of United Fire Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in United Fire Group during the third quarter worth about $2,740,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 42.3% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 315,779 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $6,609,000 after purchasing an additional 93,836 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 929.0% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 99,842 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,146,000 after buying an additional 90,139 shares in the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 71.9% during the third quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 178,155 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,729,000 after purchasing an additional 74,540 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 40.8% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 234,214 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,033,000 after acquiring an additional 67,838 shares during the last quarter. 62.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UFCS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of United Fire Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Piper Sandler raised shares of United Fire Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $19.00 to $26.00 in a research report on Monday, November 18th.

About United Fire Group

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.