CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $48.75.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on CNO. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of CNO Financial Group from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of CNO Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Finally, Evercore set a $48.00 price target on shares of CNO Financial Group and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st.

Insider Activity

In other CNO Financial Group news, CEO Gary C. Bhojwani sold 86,048 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.48, for a total transaction of $4,429,751.04. Following the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Rocco F. Tarasi III sold 5,750 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 79,191 shares in the company, valued at $3,959,550. This represents a 6.77% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 95,106 shares of company stock worth $4,879,343 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 39.2% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in CNO Financial Group by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,217 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in CNO Financial Group by 32.1% during the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in CNO Financial Group by 25.0% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,888 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust increased its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 15,529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $660,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. 95.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CNO Financial Group Price Performance

CNO Financial Group stock traded down $0.07 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $52.35. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 628,229 shares, compared to its average volume of 877,102. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.89 billion, a PE ratio of 21.03 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.17. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $48.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.22. CNO Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $35.24 and a fifty-two week high of $53.03.

CNO Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 10th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This is a positive change from CNO Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 10th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. CNO Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 28.92%.

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.