CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO) To Go Ex-Dividend on March 10th

CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 12th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of 0.16 per share by the financial services provider on Monday, March 24th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th.

CNO Financial Group has raised its dividend by an average of 7.3% annually over the last three years. CNO Financial Group has a dividend payout ratio of 15.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect CNO Financial Group to earn $4.26 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.64 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 15.0%.

CNO Financial Group Price Performance

CNO stock opened at $39.65 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $37.25. The stock has a market cap of $4.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.60 and a beta of 1.02. CNO Financial Group has a 1 year low of $24.92 and a 1 year high of $42.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 0.22 and a quick ratio of 0.19.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.31 earnings per share (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%. Research analysts anticipate that CNO Financial Group will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at CNO Financial Group

In related news, insider Scott L. Goldberg sold 25,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.02, for a total transaction of $1,020,510.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 169,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,777,066.84. This trade represents a 13.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, General Counsel Matthew J. Zimpfer sold 40,800 shares of CNO Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.49, for a total transaction of $1,692,792.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 244,943 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,162,685.07. This represents a 14.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 138,584 shares of company stock valued at $5,597,404 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on CNO shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of CNO Financial Group from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $46.00 price objective (up from $44.00) on shares of CNO Financial Group in a report on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of CNO Financial Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of CNO Financial Group in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of CNO Financial Group from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $40.50.

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.