CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO) Stock Price & How to Invest
Last updated July 2026
Short answer
CNO Financial Group (NYSE: CNO) is a mid-cap insurer focused on middle-income and senior Americans, selling life, health, supplemental and annuity products through the Bankers Life, Washington National, Colonial Penn and Optavise brands. It is generally viewed as a steady, dividend-growing insurance holding company rather than a fast-growth story.
CNO stock price
As of 2026-07-17, CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO) last closed at $53.59, up 42.2% over the past year. Over the past 52 weeks it has traded between $35.49 and $53.59.
Prices are daily closing prices from Yahoo Finance and may be delayed. For the live quote, check your broker or CNO Financial Group, Inc.'s investor relations page. Walnut is informational, not investment advice.
What does CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO) do?
CNO Financial Group provides life and health insurance, annuities, and workforce benefits to middle-income and senior consumers across the United States. It reaches customers through a mix of career agents (Bankers Life), worksite and independent distribution (Washington National and Optavise), and direct-to-consumer channels (Colonial Penn, known for its television-advertised life policies). The company reports roughly 3.3 million policies and about $39 billion in total assets, and organizes its business around three main insurance segments plus a fee-based benefits arm.
The investment picture is that of a stable, capital-return-focused insurer. CNO has posted a long streak of new-sales growth (15 consecutive quarters as of Q1 2026), grown operating earnings per share at a double-digit pace, and raised its dividend for 14 straight years while buying back stock. As a life-and-health insurer, its results are sensitive to interest rates, investment-portfolio credit quality, and the performance of legacy long-term-care blocks. Investors typically weigh its low valuation and consistent capital return against the slower structural growth of the middle-income insurance market.
What's driving CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO)?
1. Middle-income and senior market focus
CNO targets a large, underserved segment of Americans who are often overlooked by larger insurers and wealth managers. Aging demographics support demand for Medicare supplement, supplemental health, final-expense life and annuity products. This niche gives CNO a defensible distribution position through career and worksite agents.
2. Consistent sales and earnings momentum
The company has reported multiple consecutive quarters of new annualized premium growth and double-digit operating EPS gains. Q1 2026 operating EPS rose about 33% year over year, and full-year 2025 operating EPS reached roughly $4.40. Continued agent recruiting and worksite expansion are the main levers for further growth.
3. Capital return and balance-sheet strength
CNO has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years and regularly returns capital through buybacks, reducing its share count over time. A solid statutory capital position and steady operating cash flow support this program. Book value per share has been growing alongside earnings.
4. Investment income leverage
As an insurer, CNO earns a meaningful portion of profit from its investment portfolio backing policy reserves. Higher reinvestment yields in a higher-rate environment can lift net investment income over time. Portfolio positioning and credit quality are central to sustaining spread income.
What are the risks to CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO)?
CNO carries the typical risks of a life and health insurer. Its investment portfolio is exposed to credit losses, and prolonged low or sharply changing interest rates can pressure spread income and reserve adequacy. Legacy long-term-care insurance blocks can require reserve strengthening if claims or assumptions worsen. Margin compression, adverse mortality or morbidity trends, and regulatory or reserving changes can weigh on earnings. As a mid-cap insurer, the stock can also be more sensitive to sentiment shifts than larger, more diversified peers.
How is CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO) valued? (approximate, July 2026)
A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see CNO Financial Group, Inc.'s investor relations page or your broker.
- Market cap: ~$4.9B
- Revenue (TTM): ~$4.1B
- Net income (FY2025): ~$229M
- Operating EPS (FY2025): ~$4.40
- Forward P/E: ~12x
- Dividend yield: ~1.3%
CNO trades at a modest forward earnings multiple relative to the broader market, consistent with its profile as a mature, mid-cap insurer. It has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years, with a recent quarterly payout of about $0.17 per share. Total assets are roughly $39 billion backing about 3.3 million policies.
Who competes with CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO)?
Middle-income and senior life insurers
Companies like Globe Life, Primerica and Aflac target similar mass-market and worksite customers with life and supplemental health products, competing for the same middle-income households and independent agent distribution.
Diversified life and annuity insurers
Larger players such as Lincoln National, Unum, Genworth and Brighthouse compete in overlapping life, supplemental health, long-term-care and annuity lines, often with broader product menus and larger balance sheets.
Medicare and senior health distributors
Firms marketing Medicare supplement and related senior products, including parts of UnitedHealth and Humana and specialty distributors, compete for the aging middle-income customers central to CNO's Bankers Life franchise.
How to invest in CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO)
There are three common ways to get CNO exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it, which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic basket, so CNO sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.
Walnut takes the basket route. Describe a thesis where CNO fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.
The bottom line on CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO)
CNO is a value-oriented, dividend-raising insurer serving the underserved middle-income market, with steady sales momentum offset by interest-rate and long-term-care sensitivity.
More on CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO)
Whether CNO is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, what would have to go right, and the risks in is CNO a buy?, and where the stock could go from here in the CNO stock forecast.
For income investors, whether CNO pays a dividend and how the payout looks is covered in does CNO pay a dividend?
Build a basket around CNO with Walnut
Use CNO Financial Group, Inc. as one constituent in a thematic basket Walnut's AI helps you assemble. Describe a thesis you believe in, the AI proposes the holdings and weights, and you approve before any broker order.
FAQ
What does CNO Financial Group do?
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CNO is an insurance holding company that sells life, health, supplemental and annuity products to middle-income and senior Americans. It operates through the Bankers Life, Washington National, Colonial Penn and Optavise brands, using career agents, worksite distribution and direct-to-consumer channels.
Is CNO Financial a large company?
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CNO is a mid-cap company with a market value of roughly $4.9 billion as of July 2026. It reports about $39 billion in total assets and around 3.3 million policies, but it is smaller than the largest diversified life insurers.
Does CNO Financial pay a dividend?
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Yes. CNO pays a quarterly cash dividend, recently about $0.17 per share, for a yield near 1.3% as of July 2026. The company has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years.
How has CNO been performing recently?
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CNO reported full-year 2025 operating EPS of roughly $4.40 and continued growth into 2026, with Q1 2026 operating EPS up about 33% year over year. The company has cited a long streak of consecutive quarters of new-sales growth.
What are the main risks for CNO?
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Key risks include interest-rate and investment-portfolio credit exposure, legacy long-term-care reserve adequacy, and potential margin compression. Adverse mortality, morbidity or regulatory changes can also affect earnings, and as a mid-cap the stock can be sensitive to sentiment.
Who competes with CNO Financial?
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CNO competes with middle-income life insurers like Globe Life, Primerica and Aflac, diversified insurers such as Lincoln National, Unum and Genworth, and senior health distributors in the Medicare supplement space.
What are CNO's main business segments?
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CNO reports through Bankers Life (career-agent sales to seniors), Washington National (worksite and supplemental health), and Colonial Penn (direct-to-consumer life). Optavise provides workforce and Medicare benefits solutions.
Is CNO considered a value or growth stock?
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CNO is generally viewed as a value-oriented, dividend-growth insurance stock. It trades at a modest forward earnings multiple and emphasizes steady capital return over rapid growth, though it has delivered double-digit operating EPS gains recently.
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Financial figures on this page are approximations; always verify current numbers with CNO Financial Group, Inc.'s investor relations page or your broker before making investment decisions.