Ameriprise Financial Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 392,088 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 17,142 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.21% of Unum Group worth $28,624,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Unum Group by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,497,586 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,496,939,000 after purchasing an additional 1,596,078 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 4th quarter worth about $1,003,918,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Unum Group by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,552,252 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $405,481,000 after buying an additional 51,744 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Unum Group by 33.2% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,930,349 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $140,973,000 after buying an additional 480,926 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Unum Group by 15.4% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,708,452 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $124,768,000 after buying an additional 227,644 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Insider Activity at Unum Group
In other Unum Group news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of Unum Group 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 in the company, valued at $2,588,751. This trade represents a 18.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.99, for a total transaction of $4,099,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 980,637 shares in the company, valued at $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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 67,000 shares of company stock worth $5,478,750. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several research firms have recently weighed in on UNM. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Unum Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Unum Group from $95.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Unum Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unum Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $88.50.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on UNM
Unum Group Trading Up 1.6%
Shares of Unum Group stock traded up $1.30 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $82.07. The stock had a trading volume of 1,308,830 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,314,821. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $78.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $75.70. The firm has a market cap of $14.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.38. 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 $84.48.
Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last issued 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). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. The business had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.12 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current year.
Unum Group declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.
Unum Group Announces Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. Unum Group's payout ratio is 19.79%.
Unum Group Profile
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Free Report)
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.
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