United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.64 EPS

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.64, Zacks reports. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 6.75% and a net margin of 4.15%.

United Fire Group Stock Up 1.1 %

UFCS traded up $0.28 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $25.06. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 149,739 shares, compared to its average volume of 130,926. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.87. The company has a market cap of $635.02 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.53. United Fire Group has a 1 year low of $18.04 and a 1 year high of $31.70.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.99%.

Insider Activity at United Fire Group

In other United Fire Group news, VP Corey Lynn Ruehle sold 2,664 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.60, for a total value of $78,854.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,523 shares in the company, valued at $370,680.80. This represents a 17.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 5.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of United Fire Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $19.00 to $26.00 in a research report on Monday, November 18th.

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.