Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Shares Purchased by LPL Financial LLC

LPL Financial LLC grew its position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 297,229 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 14,890 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.16% of Unum Group worth $21,707,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Unum Group by 50.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 469,342 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,554,000 after buying an additional 156,380 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 44.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 16,495 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,205,000 after acquiring an additional 5,047 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Unum Group during the 3rd quarter worth $1,074,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management purchased a new stake in Unum Group during the 4th quarter worth $8,816,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Unum Group by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,552,252 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $405,481,000 after purchasing an additional 51,744 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Unum Group from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Raymond James upgraded Unum Group from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $108.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $90.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com cut shares of Unum Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Five research 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $87.86.

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Unum Group Stock Down 10.2 %

NYSE UNM traded down $8.10 on Friday, hitting $71.14. 2,657,599 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,271,360. 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 has a 50-day moving average of $78.19 and a 200 day moving average of $72.06. Unum Group has a twelve month low of $48.38 and a twelve month high of $84.48. The company has a market capitalization of $12.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.74.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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, analysts expect that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Unum Group's payout ratio is currently 17.74%.

Unum Group announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Unum Group news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 980,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,402,427.63. The trade was a 4.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $579,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,588,751. This represents a 18.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by 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.