United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.64 EPS

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) posted its earnings results on Tuesday. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.64, Zacks reports. United Fire Group had a net margin of 4.15% and a return on equity of 6.75%.

United Fire Group Stock Performance

United Fire Group stock traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $25.06. 147,443 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 128,106. United Fire Group has a one year low of $18.04 and a one year high of $31.70. The stock has a market cap of $635.02 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.53. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $27.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.87.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were given 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 2.55%. United Fire Group’s payout ratio is presently 32.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Fire Group

In other news, VP Corey Lynn Ruehle sold 2,664 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.60, for a total value of $78,854.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $370,680.80. The trade was a 17.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 5.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on UFCS shares. StockNews.com raised shares of United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler raised shares of United Fire Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $19.00 to $26.00 in a research note on Monday, November 18th.

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.