Graham Capital Management L.P. Invests $1.70 Million in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 23,328 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,704,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of UNM. Barrett & Company Inc. raised its position in Unum Group by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 396 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its position in Unum Group by 28.8% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 800 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the period. Finally, Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter worth $58,000. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays raised their target price on Unum Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Unum Group from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Unum Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Unum Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $88.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 10,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $800,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 51,170 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,093,600. The trade was a 16.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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. Over the last three months, insiders sold 67,000 shares of company stock valued at $5,478,750. Insiders own 0.92% of the company's stock.

Unum Group Stock Performance

Shares of Unum Group stock traded up $1.07 on Thursday, hitting $80.78. The stock had a trading volume of 828,590 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,310,283. The company's 50 day moving average price is $78.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $75.43. The stock has a market cap of $14.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Unum Group has a 52-week low of $48.38 and a 52-week high of $84.48.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.19 by ($0.15). The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.34 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 14.91%. Unum Group's revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.12 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 19.79%.

Unum Group declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 18th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.