Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Stock Sees Unusually High Call Option Buying

Key Points

• Unum Group saw unusually heavy call-option activity, with investors purchasing 20,300 call options—about 659% above its typical volume.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $2.16, matching analyst estimates, while revenue reached $3.39 billion and increased slightly year over year. Unum also declared a $0.505 quarterly dividend and authorized a $1 billion share-repurchase program.
• Wall Street’s consensus view is “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $99.42 versus a recent share price of $89.70; however, insiders have sold shares totaling nearly $1 million over the past 90 days.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Investors bought 20,300 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 659% compared to the typical volume of 2,674 call options.

Unum Group Price Performance

Unum Group stock traded up $0.54 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $89.70. The company had a trading volume of 609,815 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,552,512. Unum Group has a 12-month low of $69.02 and a 12-month high of $96.77. The company has a market capitalization of $14.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.25. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $92.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $83.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.34.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16. Unum Group had a return on equity of 12.60% and a net margin of 5.26%. The business had revenue of $3.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.92 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 8.64 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, October 30th will be issued a $0.5050 dividend. This represents a $2.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 30th. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.09%.

Unum Group announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, August 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Unum Group

In other news, Director Timothy F. Keaney sold 4,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.02, for a total value of $404,286.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 36,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,431,918.04. This represents a 10.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Lynn Jr sold 2,188 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.31, for a total value of $206,350.28. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,154 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $769,003.74. This trade represents a 21.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,488 shares of company stock worth $988,396. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Unum Group

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Unum Group by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,084,382 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $298,287,000 after buying an additional 292,670 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the second quarter valued at $84,097,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Unum Group by 14.6% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 754,335 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $55,089,000 after purchasing an additional 96,123 shares in the last quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 2nd quarter worth $58,064,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 631,694 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $46,133,000 after purchasing an additional 110,342 shares during the period. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on UNM. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Unum Group from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. UBS Group set a $94.00 price objective on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Unum Group from $101.00 to $98.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $106.00 target price on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Unum Group from $117.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $99.42.

About Unum Group

Unum Group is an insurance company that provides employee benefits and related protection products through employers, as well as selected individual policies. Its offerings are designed to help people manage the financial impact of illness, injury, death and other unexpected events.

The company's products include short-term and long-term disability insurance, group and individual life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment coverage, and supplemental health benefits such as accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity insurance.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.