Ethic Inc. Acquires New Position in CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO)

Ethic Inc. acquired a new position in CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 7,121 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $265,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FJ Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CNO Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth about $933,000. Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in CNO Financial Group by 36.8% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 111,498 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,149,000 after buying an additional 29,972 shares during the last quarter. Corton Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in CNO Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in CNO Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $14,270,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 236.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 922,411 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,323,000 after acquiring an additional 648,591 shares during the last quarter. 95.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CNO Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of CNO Financial Group stock traded down $1.46 on Wednesday, hitting $37.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 532,651 shares, compared to its average volume of 712,548. The company has a market capitalization of $3.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 0.90. CNO Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $26.36 and a 1 year high of $43.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a current ratio of 0.22. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $39.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $39.04.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.79. CNO Financial Group had a net margin of 9.08% and a return on equity of 17.20%. The company had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $975.80 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that CNO Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CNO Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.80%. This is a boost from CNO Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. CNO Financial Group's payout ratio is presently 23.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CNO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of CNO Financial Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on CNO Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler upped their target price on CNO Financial Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on CNO Financial Group from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $41.00.

Insider Activity at CNO Financial Group

In other news, insider Scott L. Goldberg sold 25,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.11, for a total value of $1,022,805.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 169,342 shares in the company, valued at $6,792,307.62. This represents a 13.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, General Counsel Matthew J. Zimpfer sold 40,800 shares of CNO Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.10, for a total value of $1,636,080.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel now owns 204,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,186,134.30. The trade was a 16.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 118,712 shares of company stock valued at $4,804,918. 3.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About CNO Financial Group

CNO Financial Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, develops, markets, and administers health insurance, annuity, individual life insurance, insurance products, and financial services for senior and middle-income markets in the United States. It offers Medicare supplement, supplemental health, and long-term care insurance policies; life insurance; and annuities, as well as Medicare advantage plans to individuals through phone, online, mail, and face-to-face.