Two Sigma Investments LP Has $1.87 Million Stock Holdings in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS)

Two Sigma Investments LP lowered its position in shares of United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) by 30.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 65,719 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 29,419 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP owned 0.26% of United Fire Group worth $1,870,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UFCS. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,405,320 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $39,981,000 after purchasing an additional 55,616 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in United Fire Group by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,350,237 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $38,414,000 after buying an additional 16,588 shares during the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP lifted its position in United Fire Group by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 552,194 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $15,710,000 after buying an additional 66,561 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 220,022 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,260,000 after buying an additional 2,648 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 78.6% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 177,877 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,061,000 after acquiring an additional 78,254 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Jones Trading reissued a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of United Fire Group in a research report on Monday, May 12th. 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, Wall Street Zen raised shares of United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th.

United Fire Group Stock Performance

Shares of UFCS stock opened at $28.48 on Tuesday. United Fire Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $18.04 and a 52-week high of $31.70. The stock has a market cap of $724.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.97 and a beta of 0.49. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $27.82 and its 200-day moving average is $27.88.

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

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Fire Group

In other news, Director Christopher R. Drahozal sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.33, for a total transaction of $70,825.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 6.12% of the company’s stock.

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.