Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 268,612 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $19,617,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.15% of Unum Group as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its position in Unum Group by 96.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 103,528 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $7,561,000 after acquiring an additional 50,705 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Unum Group by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 891,334 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $65,094,000 after purchasing an additional 78,833 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in Unum Group by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 45,648 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,334,000 after buying an additional 1,568 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Unum Group by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 78,886 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,461,000 after buying an additional 7,219 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Unum Group by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 234,916 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $17,157,000 after buying an additional 16,863 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company's stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
UNM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $75.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com lowered Unum Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Unum Group from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Unum Group from $103.00 to $102.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Unum Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $88.36.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on UNM
Unum Group Trading Down 0.5 %
Shares of UNM traded down $0.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $78.54. 262,309 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,533,826. 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 stock's 50-day moving average is $77.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $73.83. Unum Group has a 12 month low of $48.38 and a 12 month high of $84.48. The stock has a market cap of $13.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.46.
Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.14 by ($0.11). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. Research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Unum Group Dividend Announcement
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.74%.
Unum Group declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase 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 purchase up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.
Insider Activity
In other news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,588,751. This represents a 18.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.99, for a total value of $4,099,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 980,637 shares in the company, valued at $80,402,427.63. This represents a 4.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.
About Unum Group
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Free Report)
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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