CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co Sells 2,539 Shares of United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS)

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lessened its stake in shares of United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) by 11.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,450 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 2,539 shares during the quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned about 0.08% of United Fire Group worth $553,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new position in United Fire Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $60,000. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of United Fire Group in the 4th quarter worth $369,000. Barclays PLC grew its position in United Fire Group by 122.4% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 98,712 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,809,000 after purchasing an additional 54,332 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in United Fire Group in the 4th quarter valued at $980,000. Finally, Martingale Asset Management L P increased its stake in United Fire Group by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 47,926 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,363,000 after purchasing an additional 3,836 shares in the last quarter. 62.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Fire Group Price Performance

UFCS opened at $28.05 on Wednesday. United Fire Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $18.04 and a fifty-two week high of $31.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $712.27 million, a P/E ratio of 11.79 and a beta of 0.33. The company’s 50-day moving average is $27.78 and its 200 day moving average is $26.74.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.64. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 4.94%. On average, equities research analysts expect that United Fire Group, Inc. will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current year.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. United Fire Group’s payout ratio is 26.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UFCS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of United Fire Group from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Jones Trading upgraded United Fire Group to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $32.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com raised United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director James Noyce acquired 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $26.97 per share, for a total transaction of $53,940.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 27,316 shares in the company, valued at approximately $736,712.52. This trade represents a 7.90 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Christopher R. Drahozal sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.33, for a total value of $70,825.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 441,863 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,517,978.79. This represents a 0.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

United Fire Group Company Profile

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.