CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the six ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $43.60.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CNO. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CNO Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on CNO Financial Group from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th.

CNO Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CNO opened at $40.02 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.17. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $39.55 and a 200 day moving average of $38.37. The firm has a market cap of $3.88 billion, a PE ratio of 14.77 and a beta of 0.90. CNO Financial Group has a one year low of $34.36 and a one year high of $43.20.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter. CNO Financial Group had a net margin of 6.41% and a return on equity of 16.63%. The company had revenue of $968.30 million during the quarter. As a group, research analysts predict that CNO Financial Group will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNO Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 10th were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 10th. CNO Financial Group’s payout ratio is 25.09%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CNO. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 70.9% in the second quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,546,745 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $59,673,000 after buying an additional 641,950 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in CNO Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $24,071,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of CNO Financial Group by 72.7% in the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,333,698 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $51,641,000 after purchasing an additional 561,327 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama purchased a new stake in shares of CNO Financial Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $11,857,000. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of CNO Financial Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $10,651,000. 95.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About CNO Financial Group

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.