CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) Stake Lowered by Pzena Investment Management LLC

Pzena Investment Management LLC cut its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) by 30.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,179,386 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,398,504 shares during the quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned approximately 3.08% of CNO Financial Group worth $118,305,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CNO. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. bought a new position in shares of CNO Financial Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Meritage Portfolio Management grew its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 9.3% during the third quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 18,475 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $648,000 after purchasing an additional 1,568 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP bought a new position in CNO Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $896,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in CNO Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $438,000. Finally, MQS Management LLC bought a new position in CNO Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $225,000. 95.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CNO. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on CNO Financial Group from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on CNO Financial Group from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $46.00 price objective (up from $44.00) on shares of CNO Financial Group in a report on Monday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on CNO Financial Group in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on CNO Financial Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Scott L. Goldberg sold 25,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.02, for a total transaction of $1,020,510.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 169,342 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,777,066.84. This represents a 13.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Rocco F. Tarasi III sold 1,484 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.02, for a total value of $56,421.68. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 79,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,037,645.92. This trade represents a 1.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 138,584 shares of company stock worth $5,597,404. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

CNO Financial Group Stock Performance

CNO opened at $38.60 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.32 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 0.22 and a quick ratio of 0.19. CNO Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $24.92 and a 1-year high of $42.41. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $39.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.40.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.25. CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 17.20% and a net margin of 9.08%. Research analysts predict that CNO Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNO Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.11%.

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.