Interval Partners LP Lowers Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Interval Partners LP lessened its holdings in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 66.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,300 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 42,200 shares during the period. Interval Partners LP's holdings in Unum Group were worth $1,556,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its stake in Unum Group by 54.2% during the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 786,168 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $57,414,000 after buying an additional 276,466 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 146.1% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 330,081 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $24,116,000 after purchasing an additional 195,947 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at $4,166,000. KKM Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at $219,000. Finally, Gotham Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 21,374 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,561,000 after purchasing an additional 2,170 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company's stock.

Unum Group Stock Up 1.7%

Unum Group stock traded up $1.35 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $82.12. The stock had a trading volume of 583,117 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,310,033. The company has a market cap of $14.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.67, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The business's 50 day moving average price is $78.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $75.56. 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 quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. The business's revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.05%. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.79%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $4,093,600. This represents a 16.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total value of $579,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,588,751. This represents a 18.28% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 67,000 shares of company stock worth $5,478,750 over the last 90 days. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on UNM shares. Raymond James raised shares of 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 note on Wednesday, March 5th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $95.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com downgraded Unum Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $75.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $88.50.

Unum Group 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.