CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the five brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $46.50.

A number of research firms have recently commented on CNO. Evercore reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $43.00 price objective on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $46.00 price target on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CNO Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on CNO Financial Group from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd.

CNO Financial Group Price Performance

CNO stock opened at $43.90 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.68 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. CNO Financial Group has a 52-week low of $35.24 and a 52-week high of $44.85. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.43.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.27. CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.80% and a net margin of 4.94%.The firm had revenue of $101.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.18 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that CNO Financial Group will post 4.36 EPS for the current year.

CNO Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th were issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 10th. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.49%.

Insider Transactions at CNO Financial Group

In other news, CEO Gary C. Bhojwani sold 45,357 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.17, for a total transaction of $1,958,061.69. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 320,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,838,013.99. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Yvonne K. Franzese sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.17, for a total transaction of $388,530.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 35,062 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,513,626.54. This trade represents a 20.43% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 196,778 shares of company stock valued at $8,442,863. 3.44% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in CNO Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $1,125,000. Diversified Trust Co grew its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 43.0% in the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 14,317 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $588,000 after buying an additional 4,303 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 102.1% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 45,025 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,914,000 after buying an additional 22,749 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in CNO Financial Group by 60.5% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 3,248 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $138,000 after acquiring an additional 1,224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 19,683 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $836,000 after acquiring an additional 498 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.43% of the company’s stock.

About CNO Financial Group

CNO Financial Group is an Indiana‐based holding company that offers a range of insurance and retirement solutions through its operating subsidiaries. Its primary business activities include life insurance, annuities, and supplemental health insurance products designed to help individuals plan for retirement and manage health‐related expenses. The company serves middle‐income Americans, with particular emphasis on senior customers seeking guaranteed coverage and reliable income streams.

Originally founded as Conseco in 1979, the company underwent a financial restructuring and rebranded as CNO Financial Group in 2010.