Ieq Capital LLC Invests $2.42 Million in CNO Financial Group, Inc. $CNO

Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new stake in CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 47,386 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,416,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in CNO Financial Group by 39.2% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in CNO Financial Group by 25.0% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,888 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 377 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its stake in CNO Financial Group by 2.1% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 19,408 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $797,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Pathstone Holdings LLC increased its stake in CNO Financial Group by 1.2% during the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 36,833 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,457,000 after purchasing an additional 439 shares during the period. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its stake in CNO Financial Group by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 90,789 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,856,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the period. 95.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at CNO Financial Group

In other CNO Financial Group news, CMO Rocco F. Tarasi III sold 5,750 shares of CNO Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $287,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 79,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,959,550. The trade was a 6.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Gary C. Bhojwani sold 86,048 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.48, for a total value of $4,429,751.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 174,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,971,110.72. This represents a 33.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 95,106 shares of company stock valued at $4,879,343 over the last ninety days. 3.44% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

CNO Financial Group Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE CNO opened at $54.29 on Wednesday. CNO Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.22 and a 52 week high of $57.59. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $53.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.02 billion, a PE ratio of 18.66 and a beta of 0.81.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $999.45 million. CNO Financial Group had a net margin of 6.02% and a return on equity of 18.76%. The company’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.87 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that CNO Financial Group, Inc. will post 4.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNO Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 10th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 10th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CNO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of CNO Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Evercore set a $48.00 price target on shares of CNO Financial Group and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded CNO Financial Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Jefferies Financial Group cut CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $53.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on CNO Financial Group from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, CNO Financial Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $52.50.

CNO Financial Group Company Profile

CNO Financial Group is an Indiana‐based holding company that offers a range of insurance and retirement solutions through its operating subsidiaries. Its primary business activities include life insurance, annuities, and supplemental health insurance products designed to help individuals plan for retirement and manage health‐related expenses. The company serves middle‐income Americans, with particular emphasis on senior customers seeking guaranteed coverage and reliable income streams.

Originally founded as Conseco in 1979, the company underwent a financial restructuring and rebranded as CNO Financial Group in 2010.