NewEdge Advisors LLC Invests $60,000 in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS)

NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 2,124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $60,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of United Fire Group by 147.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,380 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $928,000 after purchasing an additional 26,469 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in United Fire Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $575,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in United Fire Group by 27.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 99,623 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,085,000 after buying an additional 21,352 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 37,296 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,061,000 after buying an additional 945 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of United Fire Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Institutional investors own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other United Fire Group news, Director Christopher R. Drahozal sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.33, for a total value of $70,825.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 441,863 shares in the company, valued at $12,517,978.79. The trade was a 0.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James Noyce acquired 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $26.97 per share, with a total value of $53,940.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 27,316 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $736,712.52. This represents a 7.90 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 6.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

United Fire Group Price Performance

Shares of UFCS stock opened at $28.63 on Friday. United Fire Group, Inc. has a one year low of $18.04 and a one year high of $31.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $27.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.91. The stock has a market cap of $727.00 million, a P/E ratio of 12.03 and a beta of 0.33.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.64. United Fire Group had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 8.84%. Equities research analysts anticipate that United Fire Group, Inc. will post 2.42 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.89%.

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.