Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Has $674,000 Stock Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 3.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 324 shares during the quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $674,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UNM. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Unum Group by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,551 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $330,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Unum Group by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 28,795 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,712,000 after acquiring an additional 1,499 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in Unum Group by 89.5% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 111,831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,647,000 after acquiring an additional 52,813 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC raised its holdings in Unum Group by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 12,308 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $732,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares during the period. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Unum Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $5,021,000. 86.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Unum Group Price Performance

UNM stock opened at $81.54 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $14.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.61, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Unum Group has a 12-month low of $48.38 and a 12-month high of $83.96. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $76.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $70.25.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.14 by ($0.11). Unum Group had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 14.91%. On average, analysts expect that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.74%.

Unum Group declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on UNM. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Unum Group from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Raymond James raised shares of Unum Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $108.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $79.00 price objective (up from $74.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Unum Group from $81.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Unum Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.62.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In other news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $579,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,588,751. The trade was a 18.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.99, for a total transaction of $4,099,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 980,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,402,427.63. This trade represents a 4.85 % 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.

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.