Unum Group $UNM Stock: First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. Trims Holdings

Key Points

• First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. cut its Unum Group stake by 55.2% in the third quarter, selling 11,352 shares and retaining 9,198 shares worth about $807,000. Institutional investors collectively own 86.57% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with eight Buy ratings and six Holds producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $99.42, above the stock’s $92.28 price.
• Unum reported quarterly EPS of $2.16 and revenue of $3.39 billion, while maintaining a $0.505 quarterly dividend and authorizing a $1 billion share-repurchase plan covering up to 7% of outstanding shares.

First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. reduced its position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 55.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,198 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 11,352 shares during the quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.'s holdings in Unum Group were worth $807,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Unum Group by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,084,382 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $298,287,000 after buying an additional 292,670 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $84,097,000. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $58,064,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $55,273,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its position in Unum Group by 14.6% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 754,335 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $55,089,000 after purchasing an additional 96,123 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNM has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $101.00 to $98.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Unum Group from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, October 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Unum Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Atlantic Securities set a $88.00 price target on Unum Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Unum Group from $117.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Unum Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $99.42.

Unum Group Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE UNM opened at $92.28 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $92.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $87.12. The firm has a market cap of $14.61 billion, a PE ratio of 11.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.25. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $69.02 and a 1 year high of $96.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.34.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.16. Unum Group had a net margin of 5.26% and a return on equity of 12.60%. The business had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.92 EPS. The firm's revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Unum Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.600-8.900 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.64 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.5050 per share. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 30th. Unum Group's payout ratio is 47.09%.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, August 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 7% of its shares through open market purchases. Share repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In related news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.44, for a total value of $377,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 25,453 shares in the company, valued at $2,403,781.32. This represents a 13.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Walter Lynn Rice, Jr. sold 2,188 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.31, for a total value of $206,350.28. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,154 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $769,003.74. This represents a 21.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,488 shares of company stock worth $988,396. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Unum Group Company Profile

Unum Group is an insurance company that provides employee benefits and related financial protection products to individuals, employers and their workforces. Its offerings include disability insurance, group and individual life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment coverage, long-term care insurance, and supplemental health benefits.

The company serves employers through workplace benefits programs, including absence-management and leave-administration services. Through its Colonial Life business, Unum also offers voluntary benefits such as accident, critical illness, hospital indemnity and dental insurance, which employees may obtain through the workplace.

Unum Group traces its history to 1848, when Union Mutual Life Insurance Company was established in Maine.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.