Victory Capital Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,186,262 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 66,392 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.65% of Unum Group worth $70,511,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new position in Unum Group in the first quarter worth approximately $1,130,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted 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 buying an additional 28,580 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 8.0% during the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 872,808 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $44,609,000 after buying an additional 64,661 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Unum Group in the 1st quarter valued at $703,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp bought a new position in shares of Unum Group during the second quarter valued at about $3,945,000. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company's stock.

Unum Group Price Performance

UNM stock traded up $0.64 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $72.88. 454,489 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,245,954. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.82, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.76. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $61.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28. Unum Group has a 12 month low of $41.86 and a 12 month high of $73.21.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.03. Unum Group had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 13.76%. 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 previous year, the business earned $1.94 EPS. Unum Group's revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 8.53 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 30th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.18%.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In other news, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 3,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction of $227,565.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 50,762 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,554,355.24. The trade was a 6.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total transaction of $3,727,369.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,065,868 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,601,422.64. The trade was a 5.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 77,545 shares of company stock valued at $4,380,074. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on UNM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Barclays lifted their price target on Unum Group from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Unum Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $54.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Unum Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $67.73.

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.