Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Shares Sold by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada trimmed its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,409,476 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,019 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned about 0.77% of Unum Group worth $102,934,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UNM. Barrett & Company Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 396 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 36.5% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 958 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unum Group Stock Performance

UNM stock traded up $0.27 on Friday, hitting $79.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 693,326 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,320,293. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $78.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $76.36. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $48.38 and a 1 year high of $84.48. The stock has a market cap of $13.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.38. 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 (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.19 by ($0.15). Unum Group had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 14.91%. The business had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 25th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.10%. Unum Group's payout ratio is currently 19.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Unum Group news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.99, for a total transaction of $4,099,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 980,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,402,427.63. This represents a 4.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $579,250.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,588,751. The trade was a 18.28% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 67,000 shares of company stock worth $5,478,750. 0.92% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on UNM shares. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $91.00 to $89.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target 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. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Unum Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $88.29.

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.