United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Share Price Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ:UFCS) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $36.14 and traded as high as $40.46. United Fire Group shares last traded at $40.15, with a volume of 102,787 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UFCS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JonesTrading raised their price target on shares of United Fire Group from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of United Fire Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered shares of United Fire Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of United Fire Group from $37.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $40.50.

United Fire Group Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The business’s 50-day moving average is $38.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $36.14. The company has a market capitalization of $1.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.96 and a beta of 0.41.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.60. United Fire Group had a net margin of 8.52% and a return on equity of 13.84%. The company had revenue of $365.81 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $332.34 million. As a group, analysts predict that United Fire Group, Inc will post 3.65 earnings per share for the current year.

United Fire Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 24th were given a $0.20 dividend. This is a positive change from United Fire Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 24th. United Fire Group’s payout ratio is presently 17.86%.

Insider Activity

In other United Fire Group news, major shareholder Dee Ann Mcintyre sold 4,250 shares of United Fire Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.84, for a total value of $165,070.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 437,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,996,888.92. The trade was a 0.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Christopher R. Drahozal sold 4,250 shares of United Fire Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.49, for a total transaction of $163,582.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 429,113 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,516,559.37. This represents a 0.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,750 shares of company stock worth $493,723. Insiders own 6.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of United Fire Group

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UFCS. Allianz Asset Management GmbH bought a new stake in United Fire Group in the third quarter worth about $5,940,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in United Fire Group by 108.8% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 347,008 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $9,959,000 after acquiring an additional 180,836 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP raised its position in United Fire Group by 236.4% in the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 235,925 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $8,576,000 after acquiring an additional 165,789 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in United Fire Group by 59.5% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 301,076 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $8,641,000 after acquiring an additional 112,318 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG raised its position in United Fire Group by 79.4% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 211,339 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,429,000 after acquiring an additional 93,525 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

About United Fire Group

United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ: UFCS) is an insurance holding company based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, that specializes in property and casualty coverage for commercial and personal lines. The company underwrites business through three primary segments: commercial, personal and specialty insurance. Within the commercial segment, United Fire Group offers tailored policies for small- and medium-sized enterprises, including general liability, commercial property and workers’ compensation. Its personal lines cover homeowners, auto, farm and umbrella policies.

United Fire Group distributes its products primarily through a national network of independent insurance agents and brokers.