United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Earns Buy Rating from Jones Trading

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by Jones Trading in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $32.00 price target on the insurance provider’s stock. Jones Trading’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 13.64% from the company’s current price.

UFCS has been the subject of several other research reports. Piper Sandler raised their price target on United Fire Group from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of United Fire Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th.

United Fire Group Price Performance

Shares of UFCS stock opened at $28.16 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $716.70 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.83 and a beta of 0.49. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $27.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.28. United Fire Group has a one year low of $18.04 and a one year high of $31.70.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.08. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 4.94%. The company had revenue of $308.41 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $336.18 million. Equities research analysts expect that United Fire Group will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Fire Group

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in United Fire Group by 147.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,380 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $928,000 after purchasing an additional 26,469 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in United Fire Group by 27.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 99,623 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,085,000 after acquiring an additional 21,352 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in shares of United Fire Group by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 37,296 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,061,000 after acquiring an additional 945 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of United Fire Group during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in United Fire Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $231,000. 62.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.