CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the six ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $40.50.

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $46.00 target price (up from $44.00) on shares of CNO Financial Group in a report on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of CNO Financial Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of CNO Financial Group from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on CNO Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on CNO Financial Group from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th.

CNO Financial Group Stock Performance

CNO Financial Group stock opened at $42.34 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a current ratio of 0.22. The company has a market capitalization of $4.25 billion, a PE ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $40.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $37.93. CNO Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $24.92 and a fifty-two week high of $43.20.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.25. CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 17.20% and a net margin of 9.08%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that CNO Financial Group will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current year.

CNO Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. CNO Financial Group’s payout ratio is 17.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CNO Financial Group news, insider Scott L. Goldberg sold 25,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.02, for a total transaction of $1,020,510.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 169,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,777,066.84. The trade was a 13.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, General Counsel Matthew J. Zimpfer sold 40,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.10, for a total transaction of $1,636,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 204,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,186,134.30. This represents a 16.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 142,806 shares of company stock worth $5,802,013 in the last ninety days. 3.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CNO. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in CNO Financial Group by 368.2% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 796 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 626 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in CNO Financial Group by 95.2% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 855 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 417 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 51.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 955 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 193.2% in the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,337 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 881 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 137.8% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,334 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 773 shares during the last quarter. 95.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.