Brokerages Set CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) PT at $46.50

Shares of CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the five research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $46.50.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $43.00 target price on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research report on Monday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $46.00 target price on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, March 26th.

Insider Activity at CNO Financial Group

In related news, CEO Gary C. Bhojwani sold 45,357 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.17, for a total transaction of $1,958,061.69. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 320,547 shares in the company, valued at $13,838,013.99. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Matthew J. Zimpfer sold 33,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.05, for a total transaction of $1,455,090.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 307,937 shares in the company, valued at $13,256,687.85. The trade was a 9.89% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 196,778 shares of company stock worth $8,442,863 over the last quarter. 3.44% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 1.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,302,316 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $170,157,000 after buying an additional 42,467 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 3.8% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,239,944 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $128,140,000 after buying an additional 118,417 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,870,982 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $79,461,000 after buying an additional 317,690 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 35.6% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,218,033 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,730,000 after buying an additional 319,795 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 11.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 882,512 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,903,000 after buying an additional 91,417 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.43% of the company’s stock.

CNO Financial Group Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE CNO opened at $43.76 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.62 and a beta of 0.83. CNO Financial Group has a 52-week low of $35.24 and a 52-week high of $44.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.17. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $41.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.48.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.27. CNO Financial Group had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 15.80%. The firm had revenue of $101.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.18 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that CNO Financial Group will post 4.36 earnings per share for the current year.

CNO Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 10th. CNO Financial Group’s payout ratio is presently 30.49%.

CNO Financial Group Company Profile

CNO Financial Group is an Indiana‐based holding company that offers a range of insurance and retirement solutions through its operating subsidiaries. Its primary business activities include life insurance, annuities, and supplemental health insurance products designed to help individuals plan for retirement and manage health‐related expenses. The company serves middle‐income Americans, with particular emphasis on senior customers seeking guaranteed coverage and reliable income streams.

Originally founded as Conseco in 1979, the company underwent a financial restructuring and rebranded as CNO Financial Group in 2010.