Bank of America Corp DE Sells 11,250 Shares of United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS)

Bank of America Corp DE lowered its stake in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS - Free Report) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 602,428 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 11,250 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned 2.38% of United Fire Group worth $17,139,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 48.5% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 12,622 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $359,000 after acquiring an additional 4,124 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in United Fire Group in the 4th quarter valued at $217,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in United Fire Group by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 220,022 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $6,260,000 after purchasing an additional 2,648 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in United Fire Group in the 4th quarter valued at $223,000. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL grew its position in United Fire Group by 13.8% in the 4th quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 79,832 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,271,000 after purchasing an additional 9,708 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.68% of the company's stock.

United Fire Group Trading Up 0.8%

NASDAQ UFCS traded up $0.22 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $27.80. The company's stock had a trading volume of 76,805 shares, compared to its average volume of 127,168. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $27.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.76. United Fire Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $18.04 and a twelve month high of $31.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $707.54 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68 and a beta of 0.49.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $308.41 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $336.18 million. United Fire Group had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 8.84%. As a group, research analysts forecast that United Fire Group, Inc. will post 2.42 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. United Fire Group's dividend payout ratio is 25.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jones Trading reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $32.00 price target on shares of United Fire Group in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of United Fire Group from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of United Fire Group from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Fire Group news, major shareholder Dee Ann Mcintyre sold 2,500 shares of United Fire Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.31, for a total transaction of $68,275.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 446,863 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,203,828.53. The trade was a 0.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 6.12% of the company's stock.

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.