Rhumbline Advisers Sells 3,205 Shares of United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ:UFCS)

Rhumbline Advisers lessened its stake in shares of United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ:UFCS) by 4.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 62,943 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 3,205 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.25% of United Fire Group worth $1,854,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Yousif Capital Management LLC bought a new position in United Fire Group in the 4th quarter worth $231,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 103,210 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,936,000 after purchasing an additional 2,940 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in United Fire Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $980,000. Inceptionr LLC acquired a new stake in United Fire Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $255,000. Finally, Amundi increased its position in United Fire Group by 193.3% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 10,285 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $279,000 after buying an additional 6,778 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

United Fire Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UFCS opened at $28.48 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $27.88 and a 200-day moving average of $27.80. United Fire Group, Inc has a 52 week low of $18.04 and a 52 week high of $31.70. The company has a market capitalization of $724.82 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.26 and a beta of 0.51.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.08. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 9.01% and a net margin of 5.13%. The company had revenue of $308.41 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $336.18 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that United Fire Group, Inc will post 2.42 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on UFCS shares. Jones Trading restated a “buy” rating and issued a $32.00 price objective on shares of United Fire Group in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th.

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.