Corey Lynn Ruehle Sells 2,664 Shares of United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) Stock

United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) VP Corey Lynn Ruehle sold 2,664 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.60, for a total value of $78,854.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 12,523 shares in the company, valued at $370,680.80. This trade represents a 17.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

United Fire Group Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of United Fire Group stock opened at $28.95 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $733.65 million, a P/E ratio of 14.92 and a beta of 0.53. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $25.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.50. United Fire Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $18.04 and a twelve month high of $31.70.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.60. The business had revenue of $322.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $306.80 million. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 6.75% and a net margin of 4.15%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.31 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that United Fire Group, Inc. will post 1.84 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on UFCS. StockNews.com raised shares of United Fire Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Piper Sandler raised shares of United Fire Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $19.00 to $26.00 in a research report on Monday, November 18th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Fire Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in United Fire Group during the 2nd quarter worth $65,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 576.4% during the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,411 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $113,000 after purchasing an additional 4,611 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of United Fire Group by 82.3% in the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 6,864 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $144,000 after buying an additional 3,098 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of United Fire Group in the third quarter worth about $211,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of United Fire Group in the second quarter valued at about $213,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

About United Fire Group

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.