United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) Shares Sold by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas cut its holdings in shares of United Fire Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFCS) by 22.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 52,771 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 15,702 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned about 0.21% of United Fire Group worth $1,501,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of United Fire Group during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in United Fire Group by 576.4% in the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,411 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 4,611 shares during the last quarter. Globeflex Capital L P purchased a new stake in United Fire Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $119,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. increased its stake in United Fire Group by 82.3% during the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 6,864 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $144,000 after acquiring an additional 3,098 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Maryland State Retirement & Pension System purchased a new position in shares of United Fire Group in the 4th quarter worth about $203,000. 62.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

United Fire Group Stock Performance

UFCS stock opened at $29.66 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $752.80 million, a P/E ratio of 12.46 and a beta of 0.45. United Fire Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.04 and a 1 year high of $31.70. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.58.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.64. United Fire Group had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 8.84%. On average, equities research analysts predict that United Fire Group, Inc. will post 2.42 EPS for the current year.

United Fire Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. United Fire Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other United Fire Group news, Director James Noyce acquired 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $26.97 per share, for a total transaction of $53,940.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 27,316 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $736,712.52. This trade represents a 7.90 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Dee Ann Mcintyre sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.31, for a total value of $68,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 446,863 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,203,828.53. The trade was 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 currently owned by insiders.

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.