First Trust Advisors LP Grows Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 15.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,708,452 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 227,644 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.94% of Unum Group worth $124,768,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UNM. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Unum Group by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,536 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $478,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Unum Group by 26.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 766 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its position in Unum Group by 28.8% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 800 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Unum Group by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,336 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $974,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the period. Finally, Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Unum Group by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 9,151 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $668,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In other Unum Group news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $579,250.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,588,751. The trade was a 18.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.99, for a total transaction of $4,099,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now 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. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on UNM. StockNews.com downgraded Unum Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $97.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price 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. Raymond James raised shares of Unum Group from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $108.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Unum Group from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $88.36.

Unum Group Stock Performance

UNM stock traded down $0.35 during trading on Friday, reaching $78.57. The stock had a trading volume of 1,111,930 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,304,718. The firm has a market cap of $13.85 billion, a PE ratio of 8.30, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock's 50 day moving average is $77.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $73.83. Unum Group has a 52 week low of $48.38 and a 52 week high of $84.48.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.14 by ($0.11). Unum Group had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 14.91%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. Unum Group's payout ratio is 17.74%.

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.