DOWLING & PARTN Lowers Earnings Estimates for Unum Group

Key Points

• DOWLING & PARTN lowered its FY2026 EPS estimate for Unum Group to $8.40 from $8.60, slightly above the analyst consensus of $8.37. The firm also forecast FY2028 EPS of $10.10.
• Several analysts cut their price targets, though most retained positive ratings; MarketBeat reported a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average target of $94.75.
• Unum beat latest-quarter earnings expectations, reporting $2.20 EPS versus $2.16 consensus, and has authorized a $1 billion share repurchase plan. It also declared a $0.505 quarterly dividend per share.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) - Stock analysts at DOWLING & PARTN reduced their FY2026 earnings per share estimates for Unum Group in a report issued on Tuesday, November 10th. DOWLING & PARTN analyst J. Hurwitz now expects that the financial services provider will earn $8.40 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $8.60. The consensus estimate for Unum Group's current full-year earnings is $8.37 per share. DOWLING & PARTN also issued estimates for Unum Group's FY2028 earnings at $10.10 EPS.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on UNM. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Unum Group from $108.00 to $97.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $96.00 to $85.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Unum Group from $109.00 to $101.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. Weiss Ratings lowered Unum Group from a "buy (b)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Unum Group from $102.00 to $91.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $94.75.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNM opened at $79.11 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $90.34 and a 200 day moving average of $84.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $12.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.11, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.25. Unum Group has a 12 month low of $69.02 and a 12 month high of $96.77.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The financial services provider reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.04. Unum Group had a net margin of 1.94% and a return on equity of 12.57%. The business had revenue of $3.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.09 EPS.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Unum Group

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of UNM. GWN Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the second quarter worth approximately $708,000. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 1,140.5% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 340,443 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,436,000 after acquiring an additional 312,999 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $84,097,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,482,000. Finally, AXQ Capital LP boosted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 266.3% in the 2nd quarter. AXQ Capital LP now owns 27,924 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,496,000 after purchasing an additional 20,300 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Walter Lynn Rice, Jr. sold 2,188 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.31, for a total value of $206,350.28. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 8,154 shares of the company's stock, valued at $769,003.74. This represents a 21.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Timothy Keaney sold 4,300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.02, for a total value of $404,286.00. Following the sale, the director owned 36,502 shares in the company, valued at $3,431,918.04. The trade was a 10.54% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,488 shares of company stock worth $988,396. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.5050 per share. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. Unum Group's payout ratio is currently 143.26%.

Unum Group declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, August 26th that allows the company to buy back $1 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Share buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About Unum Group

Unum Group is an insurance holding company that provides employee benefits and related services, primarily to employers and their workers. Its offerings include group disability and life insurance, accident and critical illness coverage, and services that help employers manage employee leave and workplace absence. Through its Unum and Colonial Life businesses, the company also provides voluntary benefits that employees can elect through their workplaces. In the United Kingdom, Unum offers workplace benefits including income protection, life insurance and critical illness coverage.

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