The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Lowers Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company trimmed its position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 5.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 373,269 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 22,509 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.20% of Unum Group worth $22,187,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Unum Group by 5.3% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 105,831 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,679,000 after purchasing an additional 5,356 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Unum Group by 15.8% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 107,682 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,777,000 after purchasing an additional 14,674 shares during the period. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Unum Group by 175.5% during the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 12,763 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $628,000 after acquiring an additional 8,131 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank raised its holdings in Unum Group by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 137,687 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $7,388,000 after purchasing an additional 1,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in Unum Group by 33.9% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 32,989 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,770,000 after buying an additional 8,359 shares during the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Unum Group Price Performance

NYSE:UNM traded down $0.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $76.90. The stock had a trading volume of 459,395 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,336,068. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.28. Unum Group has a one year low of $42.09 and a one year high of $77.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.76. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $65.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $57.56.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.03. Unum Group had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 13.76%. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.26 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.94 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Unum Group will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. Unum Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Unum Group news, CAO Walter Lynn Rice, Jr. sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.56, for a total transaction of $104,340.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 8,361 shares in the company, valued at approximately $581,591.16. This trade represents a 15.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 58,865 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.39, for a total transaction of $4,437,832.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,007,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $75,917,956.17. The trade was a 5.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 165,709 shares of company stock worth $10,956,914. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on UNM. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Unum Group from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Evercore ISI upgraded Unum Group from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $67.00 to $84.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $54.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Unum Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $67.73.

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.