Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Grows Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 43.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 575,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 175,000 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.31% of Unum Group worth $41,992,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in UNM. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Unum Group by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,497,586 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,496,939,000 after purchasing an additional 1,596,078 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at $1,003,918,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,552,252 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $405,481,000 after acquiring an additional 51,744 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 15.4% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,708,452 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $124,768,000 after purchasing an additional 227,644 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Unum Group by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,462,917 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $106,837,000 after acquiring an additional 276,655 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.57% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total value of $579,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,588,751. The trade was a 18.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was 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 approximately $80,402,427.63. This trade represents a 4.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Unum Group Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of UNM stock traded down $2.07 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $77.17. The company had a trading volume of 1,190,701 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,306,587. Unum Group has a twelve month low of $48.38 and a twelve month high of $84.48. The company has a market capitalization of $13.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.29. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $78.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.27.

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). The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.34 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 14.91%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.12 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. Unum Group's payout ratio is presently 17.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on UNM shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Barclays increased their price objective on Unum Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Unum Group from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $108.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Unum Group from $75.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Unum Group from $103.00 to $102.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Five investment 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $88.36.

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.