Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Receives $62.90 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $62.90.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on UNM shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Unum Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Unum Group from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st.

Unum Group Price Performance

UNM opened at $58.12 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.64, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $54.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $52.85. Unum Group has a 12-month low of $41.75 and a 12-month high of $58.69.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.23 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 10.40%. Unum Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.06 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Unum Group will post 8.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.89%. This is a boost from Unum Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Unum Group’s payout ratio is currently 24.96%.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, July 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In other news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 64,821 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,507,464.31. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,065,868 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,601,422.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Unum Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Unum Group by 361.5% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in Unum Group in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Unum Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Unum Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. 86.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.