D. Scott Neal Inc. Has $22.13 Million Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

D. Scott Neal Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 3.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 271,675 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 9,202 shares during the period. Unum Group comprises about 12.3% of D. Scott Neal Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. D. Scott Neal Inc. owned approximately 0.15% of Unum Group worth $22,131,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of UNM. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at $1,003,918,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,596,078 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at $113,962,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at $105,199,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at $65,096,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.57% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on UNM shares. Barclays upped their price objective 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. UBS Group set a $89.00 price objective on shares of Unum Group and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $103.00 to $102.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $95.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Unum Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $88.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $800,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 51,170 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,093,600. This represents a 16.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Unum Group Price Performance

UNM stock opened at $81.63 on Friday. 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 one year low of $48.38 and a one year high of $84.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.23 billion, a PE ratio of 8.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.43. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $78.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $76.96.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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). The business 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 for the quarter was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th were issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 19.79%.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are 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.

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