CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,340,000 shares, a growth of 27.2% from the February 28th total of 1,840,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 653,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.6 days. Approximately 2.4% of the shares of the company are sold short.

CNO Financial Group Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE CNO opened at $42.47 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $40.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $38.26. CNO Financial Group has a one year low of $24.92 and a one year high of $43.20. The company has a market capitalization of $4.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.36 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a current ratio of 0.22.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.25. CNO Financial Group had a net margin of 9.08% and a return on equity of 17.20%. As a group, equities analysts predict that CNO Financial Group will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNO Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. CNO Financial Group’s payout ratio is 17.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CNO. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on CNO Financial Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on CNO Financial Group from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of CNO Financial Group in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of CNO Financial Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of CNO Financial Group from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at CNO Financial Group

In other CNO Financial Group news, General Counsel Matthew J. Zimpfer sold 40,800 shares of CNO Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.49, for a total transaction of $1,692,792.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel now owns 244,943 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,162,685.07. The trade was a 14.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Yvonne K. Franzese sold 8,109 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.00, for a total transaction of $340,578.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,618,680. This trade represents a 17.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 159,512 shares of company stock valued at $6,497,710. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in CNO Financial Group by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,285,783 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $159,474,000 after buying an additional 130,342 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,687,861 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $100,015,000 after acquiring an additional 282,611 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,899,599 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $66,676,000 after acquiring an additional 107,589 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of CNO Financial Group by 41.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,274,370 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $47,419,000 after purchasing an additional 372,701 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 28.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,040,619 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,526,000 after purchasing an additional 232,631 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.43% of the company’s stock.

CNO Financial Group Company Profile

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.