Neuberger Berman Group LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Neuberger Berman Group LLC decreased its stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) by 10.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 422,888 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 48,184 shares during the period. Neuberger Berman Group LLC owned 0.23% of Unum Group worth $30,884,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barrett & Company Inc. raised its position in shares of Unum Group by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 396 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Unum Group by 26.4% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 766 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Unum Group in the third quarter valued at $58,000. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Raymond James upgraded Unum Group from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $108.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Unum Group from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Unum Group from $97.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Unum Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $88.36.

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Insider Activity

In other Unum Group news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.99, for a total value of $4,099,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 980,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,402,427.63. This represents a 4.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total value of $579,250.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,588,751. This represents a 18.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Unum Group Stock Performance

Shares of Unum Group stock traded up $0.35 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $77.26. 1,598,757 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,286,609. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $48.38 and a 1 year high of $84.48. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $77.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $73.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.16, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.46.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 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 forecast that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Unum Group's payout ratio is 17.74%.

Unum Group declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, February 18th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.