Affinity Investment Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Affinity Investment Advisors LLC cut its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 7.2% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 20,967 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,630 shares during the period. Affinity Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $1,246,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Unum Group by 51.7% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,961,539 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $158,590,000 after buying an additional 1,008,776 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Unum Group by 6,498.1% in the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 636,320 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,145,000 after acquiring an additional 626,676 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Unum Group by 62.9% in the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,119,870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $57,237,000 after acquiring an additional 432,240 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 105.8% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 377,627 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $20,263,000 after purchasing an additional 194,125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&G Plc acquired a new position in Unum Group during the first quarter valued at $8,988,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Stock Performance

NYSE:UNM opened at $64.12 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $58.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.51. Unum Group has a fifty-two week low of $41.75 and a fifty-two week high of $64.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.71 billion, a PE ratio of 6.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.28.

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

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 25th. Unum Group’s payout ratio is 18.18%.

Unum Group declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, July 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $66.00 price target (up from $64.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Unum Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Unum Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Unum Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Unum Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.09.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Unum Group news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total transaction of $3,727,369.10. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,065,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,601,422.64. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Unum Group news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total value of $3,727,369.10. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.11, for a total value of $541,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 64,821 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,507,464.31. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.93% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Unum Group 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.