United Fire Group, Inc $UFCS Shares Sold by Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reduced its stake in United Fire Group by 9.9%, owning 140,331 shares valued at approximately $4.13 million after selling 15,433 shares in the first quarter.
• The company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.57, with a revenue of $314.80 million.
• United Fire Group announced a quarterly dividend of $0.16 per share, translating to an annual yield of 2.0%, with a dividend payout ratio of 18.23%.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. cut its position in United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ:UFCS - Free Report) by 9.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 140,331 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 15,433 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned approximately 0.55% of United Fire Group worth $4,134,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UFCS. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 131.3% in the 1st quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,115 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 633 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 270.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,329 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 970 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 17.7% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,499 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 1,241.8% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,428 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $131,000 after purchasing an additional 4,098 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its position in United Fire Group by 192.8% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,236 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $154,000 after acquiring an additional 3,448 shares during the period. 62.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John Paul E. Besong sold 2,450 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.26, for a total transaction of $79,037.00. Following the sale, the director owned 24,494 shares in the company, valued at $790,176.44. This trade represents a 9.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 6.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

United Fire Group Price Performance

United Fire Group stock traded down $1.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $31.29. 336,462 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 121,907. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $29.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $28.59. The company has a market capitalization of $797.58 million, a P/E ratio of 8.91 and a beta of 0.56. United Fire Group, Inc has a 12-month low of $19.19 and a 12-month high of $32.58.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.33. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 11.84% and a net margin of 6.94%.The business had revenue of $314.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $337.99 million. Analysts forecast that United Fire Group, Inc will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. United Fire Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on UFCS shares. Zacks Research raised United Fire Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Jones Trading increased their price objective on United Fire Group from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $30.50.

United Fire Group Profile

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.