D.A. Davidson & CO. Lowers Holdings in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

D.A. Davidson & CO. trimmed its position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 54.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,007 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 10,666 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.'s holdings in Unum Group were worth $734,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC boosted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 8.4% in the first quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 6,064 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $494,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in Unum Group by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,757 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $225,000 after buying an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Unum Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $245,000. Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group in the first quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Summit Trail Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Unum Group by 34.2% during the first quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 10,861 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $885,000 after acquiring an additional 2,767 shares during the period. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were 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 owned 51,170 shares in the company, valued at $4,093,600. This represents a 16.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Unum Group from $76.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. UBS Group set a $89.00 price objective on Unum Group and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Unum Group from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $103.00 to $102.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays set a $96.00 price target on shares of Unum Group and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $90.00.

Unum Group Stock Performance

UNM traded up $1.15 on Thursday, reaching $80.42. The company had a trading volume of 1,074,261 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,331,747. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $50.70 and a 1 year high of $84.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.02 billion, a PE ratio of 9.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $80.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $77.80.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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). The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.34 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 12.31% and a return on equity of 14.17%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.12 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 25th will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This is an increase from Unum Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 19.79%.

Unum Group 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.