United Fire Group, Inc $UFCS Shares Acquired by Bridgeway Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its stake in United Fire Group by 35.9%, owning 173,663 shares now valued at approximately $5.12 million.
• Analyst ratings for United Fire Group have improved, with Jones Trading raising its target price to $33.00 and a consensus rating upgrade to Buy across multiple reports.
• United Fire Group announced a quarterly dividend of $0.16, equating to an annual yield of 2.0%, with the payout scheduled for September 12th.

Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ:UFCS - Free Report) by 35.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 173,663 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 45,899 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC owned 0.68% of United Fire Group worth $5,116,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 131.3% during the first quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,115 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 633 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in United Fire Group by 270.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,329 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 970 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in United Fire Group by 1,241.8% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,428 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $131,000 after buying an additional 4,098 shares during the period. CWM LLC lifted its position in United Fire Group by 192.8% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,236 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $154,000 after buying an additional 3,448 shares during the period. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new position in United Fire Group during the fourth quarter worth about $177,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UFCS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jones Trading increased their target price 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. Wall Street Zen upgraded United Fire Group from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded United Fire Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Fire Group presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $30.50.

United Fire Group Stock Performance

United Fire Group stock opened at $31.79 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $28.81 and its 200-day moving average is $28.24. The company has a market cap of $810.33 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.06 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.37. United Fire Group, Inc has a 12 month low of $19.19 and a 12 month high of $32.13.

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

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

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

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.

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