Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Shares Purchased by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 30.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 610,529 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 141,187 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.33% of Unum Group worth $44,587,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group in the fourth quarter valued at $1,003,918,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,497,586 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,496,939,000 after buying an additional 1,596,078 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 44.9% in the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,264,994 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $92,383,000 after buying an additional 392,191 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of Unum Group by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 831,806 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $60,747,000 after buying an additional 277,401 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Unum Group by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,462,917 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $106,837,000 after buying an additional 276,655 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company's stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was 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 $80,402,427.63. The trade was a 4.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 31,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,588,751. The trade was a 18.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNM has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Unum Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Unum Group from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $75.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Unum Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Unum Group from $76.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $87.79.

Unum Group Price Performance

Unum Group stock traded down $2.79 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $74.10. The company had a trading volume of 452,136 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,282,348. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.28. Unum Group has a 12-month low of $48.38 and a 12-month high of $84.48. The company has a market capitalization of $13.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.46. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $77.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $72.61.

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

Unum Group announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.