Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Stake Lessened by Versor Investments LP

Versor Investments LP lessened its stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 24.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 10,586 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,400 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $629,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNM. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the 3rd quarter worth $548,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in Unum Group by 5.3% during the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 31,706 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,885,000 after acquiring an additional 1,600 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in Unum Group by 24.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,509 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $149,000 after acquiring an additional 499 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,393,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on UNM shares. UBS Group raised shares of Unum Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Unum Group from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays upped their target price on Unum Group from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Unum Group from $54.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.09.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In other news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total transaction of $3,727,369.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,065,868 shares in the company, valued at $58,601,422.64. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total value of $3,727,369.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,065,868 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,601,422.64. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 3,250 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction of $227,565.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 50,762 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,554,355.24. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 77,545 shares of company stock worth $4,380,074 over the last 90 days. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of UNM opened at $71.04 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $61.20 and its 200-day moving average is $55.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The company has a market capitalization of $12.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.76. Unum Group has a fifty-two week low of $41.86 and a fifty-two week high of $71.44.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 13.76% and a return on equity of 15.21%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.94 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Unum Group will post 8.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 25th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. Unum Group’s payout ratio is 18.18%.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, July 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.