Analysts Set Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Price Target at $72.09

Shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $72.09.

Several brokerages have issued reports on UNM. UBS Group raised Unum Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Unum Group from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Unum Group from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $67.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $54.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In other news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.92, for a total transaction of $769,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 54,827 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,217,292.84. This represents a 15.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.16, for a total transaction of $320,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,741 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,768,822.56. This trade represents a 7.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 107,914 shares of company stock valued at $7,998,745. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Unum Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in Unum Group in the third quarter worth about $37,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 38.2% during the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 702 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Unum Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 4,794.7% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 930 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 911 shares during the period. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unum Group Stock Performance

NYSE UNM traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $73.03. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,168,965 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,261,795. Unum Group has a 12 month low of $44.83 and a 12 month high of $77.63. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $71.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $60.90. 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 company has a market cap of $13.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.79.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.03. Unum Group had a net margin of 13.76% and a return on equity of 15.21%. The company had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.94 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Unum Group will post 8.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 25th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 25th. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.18%.

About Unum Group

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.