Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Shares Sold by Wedge Capital Management L L P NC

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC reduced its position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 22.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 461,513 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 135,625 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned 0.26% of Unum Group worth $37,595,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,003,918,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Unum Group by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,497,586 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,496,939,000 after purchasing an additional 1,596,078 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Unum Group in the 4th quarter valued at $113,962,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new stake in Unum Group during the 4th quarter worth $105,199,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in Unum Group during the 4th quarter worth $65,096,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.57% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on UNM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut Unum Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Unum Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Raymond James raised Unum Group from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $108.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Unum Group from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Five research 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's stock. According to MarketBeat, Unum Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $88.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $800,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 51,170 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,093,600. The trade was a 16.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Unum Group Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE UNM traded up $1.62 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $81.63. 757,948 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,317,296. The company's 50-day moving average is $78.59 and its 200-day moving average is $76.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.62, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.43. Unum Group has a 52-week low of $48.38 and a 52-week high of $84.48.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.34 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 14.91%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. Analysts expect that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th were issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.06%. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 19.79%.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 18th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.