Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New $2.33 Million Investment in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 51,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,329,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated acquired a new stake in Unum Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Unum Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Bangor Savings Bank lifted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 664 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the period. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In related news, CFO Steven Andrew Zabel sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.06, for a total value of $510,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 122,246 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,241,880.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CFO Steven Andrew Zabel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.06, for a total transaction of $510,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 122,246 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,241,880.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.15, for a total transaction of $2,457,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,076,753 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $52,922,409.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 81,000 shares of company stock valued at $4,018,100 over the last 90 days. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of Unum Group stock traded down $0.23 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $50.16. 783,309 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,432,392. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $40.04 and a 1 year high of $54.57. The company has a market capitalization of $9.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.87. The business has a fifty day moving average of $50.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

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). Unum Group had a return on equity of 16.03% and a net margin of 10.36%. The business had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.43 EPS. Unum Group's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Unum Group will post 8.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be 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 is Thursday, April 25th. Unum Group's payout ratio is 22.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Unum Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $56.38.

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.