Intech Investment Management LLC Boosts Stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 468.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 28,605 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 23,573 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC's holdings in Unum Group were worth $1,462,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,130,000. Boone Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 10.8% in the fourth quarter. Boone Capital Management LLC now owns 961,661 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,486,000 after acquiring an additional 94,096 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its position in shares of Unum Group by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 950,914 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,000,000 after acquiring an additional 33,454 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Unum Group by 43.0% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 973,480 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $44,021,000 after acquiring an additional 292,917 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Unum Group by 80.7% in the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 64,008 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,436,000 after acquiring an additional 28,580 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on UNM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Unum Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Unum Group from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Unum Group from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Unum Group in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $57.00 target price for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $62.90.

Unum Group Stock Performance

NYSE UNM traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $57.49. 984,375 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,248,903. Unum Group has a 12-month low of $41.75 and a 12-month high of $58.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $54.64 and a 200 day moving average of $52.78. The company has a market cap of $10.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.14. Unum Group had a return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 10.40%. The company had revenue of $3.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.06 earnings per share. Unum Group's quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, July 30th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. This is a boost from Unum Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.96%.

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.