DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale Raises Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 68.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 159,686 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 64,884 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale owned 0.08% of Unum Group worth $7,118,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Unum Group during the fourth quarter worth about $426,463,000. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in Unum Group by 401.2% during the second quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,639,336 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $78,196,000 after acquiring an additional 1,312,286 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Unum Group by 63.6% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,504,307 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $102,752,000 after acquiring an additional 973,311 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its holdings in Unum Group by 583.3% during the third quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,025,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $50,420,000 after acquiring an additional 875,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Unum Group by 79.8% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,952,763 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $88,616,000 after acquiring an additional 866,531 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Unum Group Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:UNM traded down $0.84 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $50.25. The company had a trading volume of 1,957,528 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,451,715. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business's 50 day moving average price is $50.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.55. The stock has a market cap of $9.64 billion, a PE ratio of 7.74, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.87. Unum Group has a 1-year low of $39.40 and a 1-year high of $54.57.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.86 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.14 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 10.36% and a return on equity of 16.03%. Unum Group's revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.43 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 26th were issued a dividend of $0.365 per share. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 25th. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on UNM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Unum Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Unum Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $56.50.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In other news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,450 shares in the company, valued at $2,772,500. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,450 shares in the company, valued at $2,772,500. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven Andrew Zabel sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.06, for a total value of $510,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 122,246 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,241,880.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 81,000 shares of company stock worth $4,018,100 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.94% of the company's stock.

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.