Hancock Whitney Corp Has $1.70 Million Stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Hancock Whitney Corp trimmed its position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 14.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 5,520 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $1,699,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Auxier Asset Management grew its stake in Unum Group by 0.7% during the second quarter. Auxier Asset Management now owns 59,126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,022,000 after buying an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc grew its stake in Unum Group by 3.0% during the second quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 80,041 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,091,000 after buying an additional 2,350 shares in the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC grew its stake in Unum Group by 7.9% during the second quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 4,888 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $250,000 after buying an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its stake in Unum Group by 9.5% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 413,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,127,000 after buying an additional 35,723 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Unum Group by 19.4% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 32,737 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,673,000 after buying an additional 5,326 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on UNM shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Unum Group in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $57.00 price target on the stock. Barclays started coverage on shares of Unum Group in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Unum Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $62.90.

Unum Group Stock Up 0.8 %

NYSE:UNM opened at $57.35 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $54.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28. Unum Group has a one year low of $41.75 and a one year high of $58.17. The company has a market cap of $10.86 billion, a PE ratio of 8.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.77.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.14. Unum Group had a net margin of 10.40% and a return on equity of 15.55%. The business had revenue of $3.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.06 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This is a positive change from Unum Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.96%.

Unum Group announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Unum Group news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total transaction of $3,727,369.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,065,868 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,601,422.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Unum Group news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.11, for a total transaction of $541,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 64,821 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,507,464.31. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total transaction of $3,727,369.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,065,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,601,422.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Profile

Unum Group, together with its subsidiaries, provides financial protection benefit solutions primarily in the United States, the United Kingdom, Poland, and internationally. It operates through Unum US, Unum International, Colonial Life, and Closed Block segment. The company offers group long-term and short-term disability, group life, and accidental death and dismemberment products; supplemental and voluntary products, such as individual disability, voluntary benefits, and dental and vision products; and accident, sickness, disability, life, and cancer and critical illness products.