Blue Trust Inc. Boosts Stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 135.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,448 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,587 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $680,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UNM. DGS Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Unum Group by 4.3% in the first quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 34,586 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,856,000 after purchasing an additional 1,437 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 44.0% during the 1st quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 106,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,688,000 after purchasing an additional 32,400 shares during the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP boosted its holdings in Unum Group by 44.2% in the first quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 161,841 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,680,000 after acquiring an additional 49,646 shares in the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Aviance Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 6.3% during the first quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 38,298 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,055,000 after acquiring an additional 2,283 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Unum Group news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total value of $3,727,369.10. Following the completion of 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 trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Unum Group news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.11, for a total transaction of $541,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 64,821 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,507,464.31. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $3,727,369.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,065,868 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,601,422.64. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $66.00 target price (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Friday, September 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Barclays cut their target price on Unum Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Unum Group from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Unum Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Unum Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.64.

Unum Group Stock Performance

NYSE UNM opened at $63.38 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.32, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $57.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.28. Unum Group has a fifty-two week low of $41.75 and a fifty-two week high of $64.52.

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 return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 10.40%. The firm had revenue of $3.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.06 earnings per share. Unum Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 25th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 25th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.71%.

About Unum Group

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.