CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.27 EPS

CNO Financial Group (NYSE:CNO) posted its earnings results on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.27, FiscalAI reports. CNO Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.81% and a net margin of 6.64%.

CNO Financial Group Price Performance

CNO Financial Group stock traded down $0.18 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $42.36. The company had a trading volume of 1,061,249 shares, compared to its average volume of 583,512. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.16. The company has a market cap of $4.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.81 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. CNO Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $34.63 and a fifty-two week high of $44.19.

CNO Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 10th were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 10th. CNO Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CNO Financial Group news, CIO Eric R. Johnson sold 48,665 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.24, for a total value of $2,006,944.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive directly owned 671,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,694,392.08. This trade represents a 6.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Rocco F. Tarasi III sold 9,283 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.60, for a total value of $395,455.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 73,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,149,503.20. This represents a 11.16% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 89,378 shares of company stock valued at $3,722,146 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CNO Financial Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in CNO Financial Group by 190.3% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 579,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,925,000 after purchasing an additional 379,984 shares during the period. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP bought a new position in CNO Financial Group during the second quarter worth $10,651,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 70.9% in the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 539,233 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,804,000 after buying an additional 223,633 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in CNO Financial Group by 32.6% in the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 764,867 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,509,000 after buying an additional 187,974 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in CNO Financial Group by 98.5% during the second quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 296,113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,424,000 after acquiring an additional 146,954 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.43% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CNO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of CNO Financial Group from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CNO Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded CNO Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $47.00 in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on CNO Financial Group from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised CNO Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CNO Financial Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.75.

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.