CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) Short Interest Down 19.3% in February

CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,840,000 shares, a decrease of 19.3% from the February 13th total of 2,280,000 shares. Currently, 1.9% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 598,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days.

Insider Transactions at CNO Financial Group

In other news, insider Scott L. Goldberg sold 25,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.02, for a total value of $1,020,510.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 169,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,777,066.84. This represents a 13.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Matthew J. Zimpfer sold 40,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.10, for a total value of $1,636,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 204,143 shares in the company, valued at $8,186,134.30. This trade represents a 16.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 132,600 shares of company stock valued at $5,372,187. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. 111 Capital bought a new stake in CNO Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth $425,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CNO Financial Group by 16.9% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,957 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $482,000 after purchasing an additional 1,873 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in shares of CNO Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth about $15,093,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in CNO Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $896,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in CNO Financial Group by 20.9% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 29,173 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 5,045 shares during the last quarter. 95.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CNO Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE CNO opened at $41.28 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $4.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.04 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $37.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. CNO Financial Group has a 12-month low of $24.92 and a 12-month high of $42.41.

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.25. CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 17.20% and a net margin of 9.08%. On average, equities analysts forecast that CNO Financial Group will post 3.83 EPS for the current year.

CNO Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 17.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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