Piper Sandler Issues Pessimistic Forecast for United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Stock Price

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) had its target price cut by equities researchers at Piper Sandler from $60.00 to $58.00 in a research note issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the insurance provider’s stock. Piper Sandler‘s price objective points to a potential upside of 21.52% from the stock’s current price.

UFCS has been the subject of several other reports. Wall Street Zen lowered United Fire Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded United Fire Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded United Fire Group from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Strong Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.50.

United Fire Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UFCS traded up $0.38 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $47.73. The company had a trading volume of 217,160 shares, compared to its average volume of 102,759. United Fire Group has a 1-year low of $33.53 and a 1-year high of $58.19. The firm has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a PE ratio of 9.13 and a beta of 0.55. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $54.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.34.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The insurance provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.11. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 15.19% and a net margin of 9.57%. The business had revenue of $391.63 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $384.18 million. Research analysts forecast that United Fire Group will post 5.07 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Scott Carlton sold 9,777 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total transaction of $542,819.04. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 200,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,134,647.04. This represents a 4.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 6.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of United Fire Group

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UFCS. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of United Fire Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of United Fire Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Fire Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $69,000. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in shares of United Fire Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $73,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of United Fire Group by 25.1% in the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,400 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.68% of the company’s stock.

About United Fire Group

United Fire Group, Inc (NASDAQ: UFCS) is an insurance holding company headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Through its insurance subsidiaries, the company provides property and casualty insurance products to businesses, individuals, and organizations, primarily through a network of independent insurance agents.

Its product portfolio includes commercial property and liability coverage, commercial automobile insurance, workers’ compensation, surety bonds, and specialty insurance products.