Morgan Stanley Has Positive Outlook on CNO Financial Following Quarter Results

In a report published Wednesday, Morgan Stanley analyst Nigel Dally reiterated an Equal-Weight rating on

. In the report, Morgan Stanley noted, “The core thesis for CNO has revolved around its initiatives including acceleration of its run‐off block, improving its capital flexibility while lowering debt costs, and delivering reasonable, predictable earnings growth. This quarter's results, in our view, showed solid progress from several angles. Company announced a reinsurance transaction that covers essentially all of its long term care exposures in OCB; with capital ratios somewhat ahead of our prior expectations, while earnings were solid, matching our estimates but running modestly ahead of the consensus. However, given the strong performance of the stock in recent periods, with the stock up ~90% in 2013 and down a touch YTD still outperforming peers, we believe the current valuation adequately reflects our favorable fundamental outlook for the company.” CNO Financial closed on Tuesday at $17.28.