Piper Sandler Raises CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) Price Target to $31.00

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) had its target price raised by Piper Sandler from $29.00 to $31.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Separately, StockNews.com lowered CNO Financial Group from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $28.00.

CNO Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of CNO opened at $27.72 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $27.64 and a 200-day moving average of $27.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.18 and a quick ratio of 0.18. The company has a market capitalization of $3.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.08 and a beta of 1.05. CNO Financial Group has a 1 year low of $22.27 and a 1 year high of $29.09.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.12). CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 16.77% and a net margin of 9.07%. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $935.76 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CNO Financial Group will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

CNO Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 10th were paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 10th. This is a boost from CNO Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.66%.

Insider Transactions at CNO Financial Group

In other CNO Financial Group news, insider Karen Detoro sold 2,778 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.10, for a total transaction of $75,283.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 69,605 shares in the company, valued at $1,886,295.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Yvonne K. Franzese sold 15,021 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.25, for a total transaction of $424,343.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 31,611 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $893,010.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Karen Detoro sold 2,778 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.10, for a total transaction of $75,283.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 69,605 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,886,295.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 39,865 shares of company stock valued at $1,123,447 over the last ninety days. 3.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CNO. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. purchased a new position in CNO Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth $50,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new stake in CNO Financial Group during the first quarter worth about $52,000. Covestor Ltd raised its position in CNO Financial Group by 18.9% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 571 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in shares of CNO Financial Group by 33.4% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 5,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $155,000 after acquiring an additional 1,391 shares during the period. Finally, Bayesian Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of CNO Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $203,000. 95.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CNO Financial Group Company Profile

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.