CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Buy” Rating

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on CNO. Jefferies Financial Group raised CNO Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $42.00 to $47.00 in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Evercore reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $43.00 target price on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of CNO Financial Group from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CNO Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.25.

CNO Financial Group Trading Down 3.0%

CNO Financial Group stock opened at $41.77 on Friday. CNO Financial Group has a 52-week low of $34.63 and a 52-week high of $44.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.73 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $42.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.84.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.27. CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.80% and a net margin of 4.94%.The company had revenue of $101.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.18 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that CNO Financial Group will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at CNO Financial Group

In other CNO Financial Group news, General Counsel Matthew J. Zimpfer sold 33,800 shares of CNO Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.05, for a total value of $1,455,090.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 307,937 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,256,687.85. The trade was a 9.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary C. Bhojwani sold 43,021 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.05, for a total value of $1,852,054.05. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 277,526 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,947,494.30. The trade was a 13.42% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 226,431 shares of company stock valued at $9,715,996. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CNO. Optiver Holding B.V. increased its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 90.1% in the 3rd quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 637 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its position in CNO Financial Group by 39.2% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in CNO Financial Group by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,217 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 349 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in CNO Financial Group by 32.1% in the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 377 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in CNO Financial Group by 25.0% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,888 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 377 shares in the last quarter. 95.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.