Virtu Financial LLC Takes Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Key Points

• Virtu Financial LLC acquired 16,392 shares of Unum Group, valued at approximately $1.34 million, as reported in its recent SEC disclosure.
• Unum Group announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.42 to $0.46 per share, reflecting a positive annualized yield of 2.7%.
• The company reported a missed earnings consensus of $2.23 per share for the last quarter, achieving $2.07 with a revenue of $3.36 billion.

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 16,392 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,335,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its position in Unum Group by 28.3% in the first quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 3,802 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $310,000 after buying an additional 838 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new stake in Unum Group in the fourth quarter worth $240,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in Unum Group by 88.4% in the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 17,302 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,409,000 after buying an additional 8,120 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in Unum Group by 202.1% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 945,271 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $77,512,000 after buying an additional 632,358 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group in the fourth quarter valued at $105,199,000. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unum Group Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE UNM traded up $0.66 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $71.00. The stock had a trading volume of 1,133,415 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,765,361. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.40. Unum Group has a one year low of $52.71 and a one year high of $84.48. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.20.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.23 by ($0.16). Unum Group had a net margin of 11.77% and a return on equity of 13.44%. The business had revenue of $3.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.16 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 25th will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. This is an increase from Unum Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 25th. Unum Group's payout ratio is currently 22.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Unum Group from $100.00 to $96.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Unum Group from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Barclays set a $96.00 price objective on Unum Group and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Finally, UBS Group set a $87.00 price objective on Unum Group and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $91.62.

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.