Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Sells 317,316 Shares of Unum Group $UNM

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reduced its position in Unum Group by 16.7%, owning 1,583,377 shares worth approximately $128.98 million after selling 317,316 shares in the first quarter.
• Unum Group reported earnings of $2.07 per share, missing estimates by $0.16, while revenue increased by 4.0% year-over-year to $3.36 billion.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend from $0.42 to $0.46, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.4% and a payout ratio of 22.01%.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 16.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,583,377 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 317,316 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned 0.91% of Unum Group worth $128,982,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UNM. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $247,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Unum Group by 95.7% in the fourth quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,169 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $524,000 after purchasing an additional 3,506 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in shares of Unum Group by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 36,967 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,700,000 after purchasing an additional 2,105 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its position in shares of Unum Group by 258.5% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 287,218 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $20,976,000 after purchasing an additional 207,110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in shares of Unum Group by 27.6% in the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 5,172 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $378,000 after purchasing an additional 1,118 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $100.00 to $96.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group set a $87.00 price objective on shares of Unum Group and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $95.00 price objective (down previously from $100.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $85.00 to $79.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $91.15.

Unum Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNM traded down $0.07 during trading on Friday, reaching $75.19. The stock had a trading volume of 1,525,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,357,237. Unum Group has a 52 week low of $54.72 and a 52 week high of $84.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $74.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $77.47.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.23 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $3.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.35 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 11.77% and a return on equity of 13.44%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. Unum Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.500-8.50 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 25th were issued a $0.46 dividend. This is a boost from Unum Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 25th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Unum Group's payout ratio is presently 22.01%.

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.