Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Stake Lifted by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 50.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 469,342 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 156,380 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.26% of Unum Group worth $29,554,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Unum Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in Unum Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 2nd quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 2nd quarter worth $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.57% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Unum Group news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.92, for a total value of $769,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 54,827 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,217,292.84. This trade represents a 15.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 58,865 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.39, for a total value of $4,437,832.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,007,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $75,917,956.17. This trade represents a 5.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 107,914 shares of company stock worth $7,998,745. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Unum Group Stock Up 0.6 %

Unum Group stock traded up $0.45 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $70.96. 1,812,785 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,263,959. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $44.32 and a 1 year high of $77.63. 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 firm has a market cap of $12.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $69.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $59.46.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 13.76%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.94 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Unum Group will post 8.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.37%. Unum Group's payout ratio is 18.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNM has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Unum Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Unum Group from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Evercore ISI upgraded Unum Group from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $67.00 to $84.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $72.09.

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.