Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $64.97 and last traded at $64.87, with a volume of 910260 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $64.08.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNM has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group raised Unum Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays increased their price objective on Unum Group from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Unum Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Unum Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.09.

Unum Group Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $12.67 billion, a PE ratio of 7.60, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $59.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $54.96.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.26 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 13.76%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.94 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.42%. Unum Group’s payout ratio is currently 18.18%.

Unum Group declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, July 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 64,821 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,507,464.31. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 64,821 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,507,464.31. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of Unum Group 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,065,868 shares in the company, valued at $58,601,422.64. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 82,795 shares of company stock valued at $4,589,269 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Unum Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Unum Group by 361.5% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Unum Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Unum Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Unum Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in Unum Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Company 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.