Short Interest in CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) Rises By 9.6%

CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,940,000 shares, an increase of 9.6% from the October 15th total of 1,770,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 702,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days. Approximately 1.9% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on CNO shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of CNO Financial Group from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on CNO Financial Group from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on CNO Financial Group from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $34.50.

CNO Financial Group Stock Down 0.3 %

CNO stock opened at $38.95 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.71 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $35.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $31.76. CNO Financial Group has a 12 month low of $24.92 and a 12 month high of $40.29.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.29. CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 17.53% and a net margin of 6.06%. The business had revenue of $1.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $945.44 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.88 EPS. CNO Financial Group’s quarterly revenue was up 19.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CNO Financial Group will post 3.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNO Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.64%. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jeremy David Williams sold 4,783 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.09, for a total value of $191,750.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 62,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,490,430.89. This trade represents a 7.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jeanne L. Linnenbringer sold 5,364 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.88, for a total transaction of $187,096.32. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 44,884 shares in the company, valued at $1,565,553.92. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 15,582 shares of company stock worth $565,050. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of CNO Financial Group

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNO. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 65.8% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,645 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $375,000 after purchasing an additional 5,415 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 11.8% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 119,364 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,280,000 after acquiring an additional 12,556 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of CNO Financial Group by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 25,476 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $700,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its stake in CNO Financial Group by 30.9% during the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 105,374 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,896,000 after acquiring an additional 24,844 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL grew its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 2.1% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 19,189 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $527,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares during the period. 95.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CNO Financial Group Company 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.