Jump Financial LLC Reduces Holdings in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS)

Jump Financial LLC reduced its stake in United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) by 21.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,708 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 3,259 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC’s holdings in United Fire Group were worth $333,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in shares of United Fire Group in the fourth quarter worth $369,000. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in United Fire Group by 122.4% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 98,712 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,809,000 after acquiring an additional 54,332 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of United Fire Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $980,000. Martingale Asset Management L P raised its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 47,926 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,363,000 after acquiring an additional 3,836 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 55,882 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,590,000 after purchasing an additional 1,676 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com raised United Fire Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on United Fire Group from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Jones Trading raised shares of United Fire Group to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $32.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director James Noyce purchased 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $26.97 per share, for a total transaction of $53,940.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 27,316 shares in the company, valued at approximately $736,712.52. This trade represents a 7.90 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Christopher R. Drahozal sold 2,500 shares of the 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 directly owns 441,863 shares in the company, valued at $12,517,978.79. This trade represents a 0.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

United Fire Group Stock Performance

United Fire Group stock opened at $27.47 on Friday. United Fire Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $18.04 and a fifty-two week high of $31.70. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $27.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $26.58. The stock has a market cap of $697.55 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 0.33.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, analysts predict 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 given a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.89%.

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.