United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS) Raised to "Neutral" at Piper Sandler

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Piper Sandler from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report issued on Monday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has a $26.00 price target on the insurance provider's stock, up from their prior price target of $19.00. Piper Sandler's price target indicates a potential downside of 5.21% from the company's current price.

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Fire Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th.

United Fire Group Trading Up 7.9 %

UFCS traded up $2.01 on Monday, hitting $27.43. The company had a trading volume of 160,156 shares, compared to its average volume of 106,486. The company's fifty day moving average price is $20.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $21.24. United Fire Group has a 1 year low of $18.04 and a 1 year high of $27.68. The firm has a market cap of $695.08 million, a P/E ratio of 13.79 and a beta of 0.37.

United Fire Group (NASDAQ:UFCS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.60. United Fire Group had a return on equity of 6.75% and a net margin of 4.15%. The company had revenue of $322.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $306.80 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.31 EPS. On average, analysts predict that United Fire Group will post 1.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Fire Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UFCS. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in United Fire Group in the second quarter valued at $65,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in United Fire Group by 576.4% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,411 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 4,611 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of United Fire Group by 82.3% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 6,864 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $144,000 after purchasing an additional 3,098 shares in the last quarter. Lion Street Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in United Fire Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $201,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC purchased a new stake in United Fire Group during the first quarter valued at about $202,000. 62.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About United Fire Group

United Fire Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides property and casualty insurance for individuals and businesses in the United States. The company offers commercial and personal lines of property and casualty insurance; and reinsurance coverage for property and casualty insurance. Its commercial lines include fire and allied lines, other liability, automobile, workers' compensation, fidelity and surety coverage, and other insurance products; and personal lines comprise automobile, and fire and allied lines coverage, including homeowners, as well as provides assumed reinsurance products.