Walter Lynn Rice, Jr. Sells 1,500 Shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Stock

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) CAO Walter Lynn Rice, Jr. sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.56, for a total transaction of $104,340.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 8,361 shares in the company, valued at approximately $581,591.16. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Unum Group Stock Up 0.1 %

Unum Group stock opened at $69.42 on Friday. Unum Group has a 52 week low of $41.86 and a 52 week high of $70.40. The stock has a market cap of $12.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.51, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.76. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $60.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $55.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

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

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, July 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 25th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.18%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,130,000. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Unum Group by 80.7% during the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 64,008 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,436,000 after buying an additional 28,580 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its position in Unum Group by 8.0% in the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 872,808 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,609,000 after buying an additional 64,661 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Unum Group in the first quarter worth approximately $703,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 54.2% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 78,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,150,000 after buying an additional 27,599 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on UNM shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group raised Unum Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $54.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.09.

About Unum Group

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.