McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. Has $14.04 Million Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. lessened its holdings in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 32.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 192,299 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 94,386 shares during the period. Unum Group comprises approximately 1.9% of McGowan Group Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.11% of Unum Group worth $14,044,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of UNM. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in Unum Group by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,536 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $478,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 18,211 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,330,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 28.8% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 800 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Unum Group by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,336 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $974,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Belpointe Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Unum Group by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 9,151 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $668,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In other news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $800,000.00. Following the transaction, 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $579,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 67,000 shares of company stock worth $5,478,750. Insiders own 0.92% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on UNM. StockNews.com lowered shares of Unum Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Unum Group from $95.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Unum Group from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Unum Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $88.50.

Unum Group Stock Performance

NYSE:UNM opened at $80.84 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.10 billion, a PE ratio of 8.54, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.38. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $48.38 and a 1 year high of $84.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $78.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.36.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.12 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, 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 program on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.79%.

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.

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