FBR Capital Maintains an 'Outperform' on CNO Financial Group (CNO); CEO Jim Prieur to Retire; Ed Bonach Named as Successor

FBR Capital maintains an 'Outperform' on CNO Financial Group (NYSE: CNO).

FBR analyst says, "CNO announced that Jim Prieur, age 60, will retire as CEO on September 30, 2011. Prieur will also retire from the Board of Directors. Current CFO, Ed Bonach, 57, will become the new CEO and take Prieur's place on the Board of Directors. Bonach will serve as both CEO and CFO until his replacement is selected. Prieur's departure is somewhat surprising to us, and given that he was a very effective CEO, this is somewhat of a setback for the story. With that being said, we think Bonach is clearly the best choice as the next CEO given his experience and solid performance over the last few years. Also, the September 30 departure date gives management and the board a good amount of time to plan for the transition. While CNO is now a much more stable operating story than in the past, it is still a complicated company and having a CEO with company specific experience is a clear positive."

For more ratings news on CNO Financial Group click here and for the rating history of CNO Financial Group click here.

Shares of CNO Financial Group closed at $8.02 yesterday.

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