United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 344,900 shares, an increase of 26.8% from the November 30th total of 272,100 shares. Approximately 1.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 124,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Insider Transactions at United Fire Group

In other news, VP Corey Lynn Ruehle sold 2,664 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 12,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $370,680.80. This represents a 17.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 5.99% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Earnest Partners LLC grew its position in United Fire Group by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,293,367 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $27,794,000 after purchasing an additional 27,376 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 2.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 821,566 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $17,195,000 after acquiring an additional 17,415 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in United Fire Group by 0.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 502,232 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $10,514,000 after acquiring an additional 2,925 shares during the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP lifted its holdings in United Fire Group by 11.0% in the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 485,633 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $10,164,000 after acquiring an additional 48,049 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in United Fire Group by 42.3% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 315,779 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,609,000 after purchasing an additional 93,836 shares during the last quarter. 62.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on UFCS. Piper Sandler raised United Fire Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $19.00 to $26.00 in a research report on Monday, November 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of United Fire Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th.

United Fire Group Stock Down 0.4 %

United Fire Group stock opened at $28.37 on Tuesday. United Fire Group has a twelve month low of $18.04 and a twelve month high of $31.70. The company has a market capitalization of $718.95 million, a P/E ratio of 14.62 and a beta of 0.53. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $26.87 and its 200 day moving average is $22.83.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.60. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 6.75% and a net margin of 4.15%. The firm had revenue of $322.96 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $306.80 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.31 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that United Fire Group will post 1.84 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group Announces Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.99%.

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.