Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Shares Sold by Voloridge Investment Management LLC

Voloridge Investment Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 10.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 850,616 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 96,360 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.47% of Unum Group worth $62,120,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in UNM. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $328,000. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Unum Group by 56.7% during the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,928 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $433,000 after buying an additional 2,146 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of Unum Group by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 4,084 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $298,000 after buying an additional 319 shares during the period. Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Unum Group by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,525 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $330,000 after purchasing an additional 770 shares during the period. Finally, MBM Wealth Consultants LLC lifted its position in Unum Group by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 5,594 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the period. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In other 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 value of $4,099,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 980,637 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $80,402,427.63. This represents a 4.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,284 shares in the company, valued at $2,588,751. This trade represents a 18.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 67,000 shares of company stock valued at $5,478,750 in the last three months. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNM opened at $81.99 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $78.75 and a 200-day moving average of $76.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.29. Unum Group has a one year low of $48.38 and a one year high of $84.48. The company has a market capitalization of $14.30 billion, a PE ratio of 8.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.38.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.04 earnings per share (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 firm had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.34 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.12 earnings per share. Unum Group's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate 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 repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 25th were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 25th. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on UNM. UBS Group upped their target price on Unum Group from $75.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Unum Group from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Unum Group from $76.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday. Raymond James upgraded Unum Group from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $108.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Unum Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research 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 given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Unum Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $88.43.

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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