United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

UFCS has been the subject of several other reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of United Fire Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on United Fire Group from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Zacks Research downgraded United Fire Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Jones Trading raised their price objective on United Fire Group from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, United Fire Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.50.

United Fire Group Trading Up 0.9%

UFCS opened at $35.94 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $916.83 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.48 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. United Fire Group has a twelve month low of $24.11 and a twelve month high of $37.90. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $36.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $32.78.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The insurance provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.81. United Fire Group had a net margin of 8.22% and a return on equity of 13.64%. The firm had revenue of $354.02 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $354.46 million. Analysts predict that United Fire Group will post 2.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Fire Group

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of UFCS. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,511,541 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $54,945,000 after purchasing an additional 35,338 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in United Fire Group by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,466,752 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $44,618,000 after buying an additional 7,230 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP boosted its position in United Fire Group by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 603,747 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $17,328,000 after buying an additional 20,413 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in United Fire Group by 20.8% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 419,177 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $12,751,000 after acquiring an additional 72,169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in United Fire Group by 28.3% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 323,885 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $9,296,000 after acquiring an additional 71,436 shares during the period. 62.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About United Fire Group

United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ: UFCS) is an insurance holding company based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, that specializes in property and casualty coverage for commercial and personal lines. The company underwrites business through three primary segments: commercial, personal and specialty insurance. Within the commercial segment, United Fire Group offers tailored policies for small- and medium-sized enterprises, including general liability, commercial property and workers’ compensation. Its personal lines cover homeowners, auto, farm and umbrella policies.

United Fire Group distributes its products primarily through a national network of independent insurance agents and brokers.