United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) Position Lowered by Bank of America Corp DE

Bank of America Corp DE reduced its position in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 602,428 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 11,250 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 2.38% of United Fire Group worth $17,139,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in United Fire Group by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,405,320 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $39,981,000 after buying an additional 55,616 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of United Fire Group by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,350,237 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $38,414,000 after acquiring an additional 16,588 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in United Fire Group by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 220,022 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,260,000 after purchasing an additional 2,648 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in United Fire Group by 78.6% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 177,877 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,061,000 after purchasing an additional 78,254 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in United Fire Group by 87.6% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 142,996 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,068,000 after purchasing an additional 66,756 shares during the last quarter. 62.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at United Fire Group

In related news, Director Christopher R. Drahozal sold 2,500 shares of the business’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 sale, the director now owns 441,863 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,517,978.79. The trade was a 0.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 6.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

United Fire Group Stock Performance

United Fire Group stock opened at $28.42 on Wednesday. United Fire Group, Inc. has a one year low of $18.04 and a one year high of $31.70. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $723.32 million, a P/E ratio of 11.94 and a beta of 0.49.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.08. United Fire Group had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 8.84%. The firm had revenue of $308.41 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $336.18 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that United Fire Group, Inc. will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current year.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.30%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler raised their price target 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. StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Jones Trading restated a “buy” rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of United Fire Group in a research note on Monday, May 12th.

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.