KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Invests $131,000 in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 4,600 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $131,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Centiva Capital LP raised its position in United Fire Group by 21.5% in the 3rd quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 12,860 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $269,000 after buying an additional 2,278 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in United Fire Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $256,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 576.4% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,411 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $113,000 after buying an additional 4,611 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 2.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 821,566 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $17,195,000 after acquiring an additional 17,415 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in United Fire Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $211,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

United Fire Group Stock Up 3.5 %

UFCS opened at $26.63 on Thursday. United Fire Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $18.04 and a twelve month high of $31.70. The company has a market capitalization of $675.90 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.19 and a beta of 0.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $27.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.05.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.64. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 4.94%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that United Fire Group, Inc. will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. United Fire Group’s payout ratio is presently 26.89%.

Insider Activity

In other United Fire Group news, Director James Noyce acquired 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was bought at an average price of $26.97 per share, with a total value of $53,940.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 27,316 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $736,712.52. This trade represents a 7.90 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Christopher R. Drahozal sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.33, for a total transaction of $70,825.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 441,863 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,517,978.79. This trade represents a 0.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 5.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UFCS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Jones Trading upgraded United Fire Group to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $32.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on United Fire Group from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th.

United Fire Group 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.