Insider Selling: United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) VP Sells $78,854.40 in Stock

United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) VP Corey Lynn Ruehle sold 2,664 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.60, for a total transaction of $78,854.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 12,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $370,680.80. The trade was a 17.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

United Fire Group Price Performance

Shares of UFCS stock opened at $28.95 on Friday. United Fire Group, Inc. has a one year low of $18.04 and a one year high of $31.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $25.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.51. The stock has a market cap of $733.65 million, a P/E ratio of 14.92 and a beta of 0.53.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.60. The company had revenue of $322.96 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $306.80 million. United Fire Group had a net margin of 4.15% and a return on equity of 6.75%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.31 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that United Fire Group, Inc. will post 1.84 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Fire Group

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in United Fire Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $65,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 576.4% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,411 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 4,611 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 82.3% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 6,864 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $144,000 after purchasing an additional 3,098 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of United Fire Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $213,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in United Fire Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $211,000. 62.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.