Meritage Portfolio Management Increases Stake in CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO)

Meritage Portfolio Management increased its holdings in CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) by 12.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,776 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,301 shares during the quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in CNO Financial Group were worth $773,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNO. Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of CNO Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $54,000. CWM LLC raised its stake in CNO Financial Group by 53.0% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,750 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 606 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in CNO Financial Group by 141.8% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,985 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 1,164 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 26.7% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,349 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $118,000 after buying an additional 706 shares during the period. Finally, Connable Office Inc. bought a new stake in CNO Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $207,000. 95.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CIO Eric R. Johnson sold 3,978 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.09, for a total value of $155,500.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive now owns 631,844 shares in the company, valued at $24,698,781.96. This trade represents a 0.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CMO Rocco F. Tarasi III sold 4,500 shares of CNO Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.51, for a total value of $168,795.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 72,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,734,328.96. This represents a 5.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,745 shares of company stock valued at $572,467. Insiders own 3.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on CNO. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on CNO Financial Group from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of CNO Financial Group in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $38.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of CNO Financial Group from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of CNO Financial Group from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, CNO Financial Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.17.

CNO Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CNO opened at $40.04 on Thursday. CNO Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $24.92 and a fifty-two week high of $40.91. The company has a market cap of $4.13 billion, a PE ratio of 16.14 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a current ratio of 0.19. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $38.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.97.

CNO Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.81%.

CNO Financial Group Profile

CNO Financial Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, develops, markets, and administers health insurance, annuity, individual life insurance, insurance products, and financial services for senior and middle-income markets in the United States. It offers Medicare supplement, supplemental health, and long-term care insurance policies; life insurance; and annuities, as well as Medicare advantage plans to individuals through phone, online, mail, and face-to-face.