StockNews.com Upgrades United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) to “Strong-Buy”

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Wednesday.

Separately, Piper Sandler raised shares of United Fire Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $19.00 to $26.00 in a report on Monday, November 18th.

United Fire Group Trading Up 4.5 %

Shares of UFCS opened at $26.77 on Wednesday. United Fire Group has a 12 month low of $18.04 and a 12 month high of $31.70. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $27.53 and its 200-day moving average is $23.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $678.41 million, a PE ratio of 13.80 and a beta of 0.53.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.64. United Fire Group had a net margin of 4.15% and a return on equity of 6.75%. Equities research analysts predict that United Fire Group will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Corey Lynn Ruehle sold 2,664 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.60, for a total transaction of $78,854.40. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 12,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $370,680.80. This trade represents a 17.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 5.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of United Fire Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Barclays PLC boosted its position in United Fire Group by 147.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,380 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $928,000 after buying an additional 26,469 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in United Fire Group by 2.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 821,566 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $17,195,000 after buying an additional 17,415 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in United Fire Group by 27.3% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 99,623 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,085,000 after buying an additional 21,352 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in United Fire Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $256,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in United Fire Group by 0.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 502,232 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $10,514,000 after buying an additional 2,925 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

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.