Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Takes Position in CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new position in CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 80,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,994,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. raised its position in CNO Financial Group by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,285,783 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $159,474,000 after acquiring an additional 130,342 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,687,861 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $100,015,000 after purchasing an additional 282,611 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in CNO Financial Group by 6.0% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,899,599 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $66,676,000 after purchasing an additional 107,589 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 41.3% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,274,370 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,419,000 after purchasing an additional 372,701 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in CNO Financial Group by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 899,226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,460,000 after buying an additional 159,603 shares in the last quarter. 95.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CNO Financial Group Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE CNO opened at $37.53 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. CNO Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $26.36 and a 52 week high of $43.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.04 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a fifty day moving average of $39.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.80.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.79. CNO Financial Group had a net margin of 9.08% and a return on equity of 17.20%. The company had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $975.80 million. The firm’s revenue was down 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.52 EPS. On average, analysts predict that CNO Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current year.

CNO Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.81%. This is an increase from CNO Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on CNO shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on CNO Financial Group from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of CNO Financial Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $38.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on CNO Financial Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $41.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jeremy David Williams sold 11,300 shares of CNO Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.51, for a total transaction of $469,063.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 65,299 shares in the company, valued at $2,710,561.49. This trade represents a 14.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Yvonne K. Franzese sold 8,109 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.00, for a total transaction of $340,578.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,618,680. This trade represents a 17.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 159,512 shares of company stock valued at $6,497,710. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

About CNO Financial Group

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.