United Fire Group, Inc $UFCS Shares Sold by Tudor Investment Corp ET AL

Key Points

• Tudor Investment Corp. cut its stake in United Fire Group by 52.7% in the 3rd quarter, leaving it with 57,433 shares worth about $1.75 million, and institutional investors now own roughly 62.7% of the stock.
• Company insiders—including major shareholder Dee Ann Mcintyre and director Christopher R. Drahozal—sold 4,250 shares each recently, with insiders selling 12,750 shares in the last quarter for about $493,723 total; insiders own about 6.12% of the company.
• United Fire Group reported a strong quarterly beat with $1.50 EPS vs. $0.90 expected and $365.8M revenue, raised its quarterly dividend to $0.20 (annualized $0.80, ~2.2% yield), and trades at a PE of 8.15 with a consensus target around $40.50.

Tudor Investment Corp ET AL cut its stake in shares of United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ:UFCS - Free Report) by 52.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 57,433 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 63,981 shares during the quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL owned 0.23% of United Fire Group worth $1,747,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of UFCS. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 812.8% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,570 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 1,398 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in United Fire Group by 3,351.1% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,622 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,575 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in United Fire Group by 301.2% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,263 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 1,699 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in United Fire Group by 17.7% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,499 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in United Fire Group during the third quarter valued at about $167,000. 62.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Dee Ann Mcintyre sold 4,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.84, for a total value of $165,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 437,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,996,888.92. This trade represents a 0.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Christopher R. Drahozal sold 4,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.49, for a total value of $163,582.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 429,113 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,516,559.37. This trade represents a 0.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 12,750 shares of company stock valued at $493,723. 6.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

United Fire Group Stock Down 2.0%

UFCS opened at $36.51 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.33 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The company has a market capitalization of $931.81 million, a PE ratio of 8.15 and a beta of 0.44. The business has a 50-day moving average of $37.17 and a 200-day moving average of $35.09. United Fire Group, Inc has a fifty-two week low of $25.01 and a fifty-two week high of $40.63.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.60. The firm had revenue of $365.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $332.34 million. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 13.84% and a net margin of 8.52%. Equities research analysts forecast that United Fire Group, Inc will post 2.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Fire Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 24th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This is an increase from United Fire Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 24th. United Fire Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UFCS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of United Fire Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. JonesTrading upped their price target on shares of United Fire Group from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of United Fire Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of United Fire Group from $37.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of United Fire Group in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $40.50.

About United Fire Group

United Fire Group, Inc NASDAQ: UFCS is an insurance holding company based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, that specializes in property and casualty coverage for commercial and personal lines. The company underwrites business through three primary segments: commercial, personal and specialty insurance. Within the commercial segment, United Fire Group offers tailored policies for small- and medium-sized enterprises, including general liability, commercial property and workers' compensation. Its personal lines cover homeowners, auto, farm and umbrella policies.

United Fire Group distributes its products primarily through a national network of independent insurance agents and brokers.

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