AQR Capital Management LLC Trims Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

AQR Capital Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 12.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,444,655 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 351,045 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 1.34% of Unum Group worth $178,533,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Unum Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 50.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 469,342 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,554,000 after buying an additional 156,380 shares during the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Unum Group by 4.6% in the third quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 36,962 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,197,000 after acquiring an additional 1,611 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 26.4% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 766 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Unum Group by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,893 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $576,000 after purchasing an additional 680 shares during the period. 86.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Unum Group Price Performance

Unum Group stock traded up $2.24 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $79.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,013,587 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,305,074. The stock has a market cap of $14.04 billion, a PE ratio of 8.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.46. 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. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $78.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $74.51.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by ($0.15). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.12 EPS. The company's revenue was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 17.74%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on UNM. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Unum Group from $103.00 to $102.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $95.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $88.50.

Insider Activity at Unum Group

In other Unum Group news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 owns 980,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,402,427.63. The trade was a 4.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $579,250.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,588,751. The trade was a 18.28 % 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 corporate insiders.

About Unum Group

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.