Viking Fund Management LLC Invests $5.11 Million in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Viking Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 70,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $5,112,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Unum Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in Unum Group in the third quarter valued at $37,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in Unum Group by 38.2% during the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 702 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Unum Group by 26.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 766 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Finally, William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Unum Group news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $4,217,292.84. The trade was a 15.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.16, for a total transaction of $320,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,741 shares in the company, 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. Insiders sold 107,914 shares of company stock valued at $7,998,745 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Unum Group Stock Performance

UNM traded down $0.10 on Wednesday, hitting $75.36. 724,221 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,127,663. Unum Group has a 12-month low of $46.39 and a 12-month high of $77.63. The company has a 50 day moving average of $73.69 and a 200-day moving average of $63.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.76 billion, a PE ratio of 8.16, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.81.

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

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Unum Group's payout ratio is 18.18%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on UNM shares. Evercore ISI raised Unum Group from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $67.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $79.00 price target (up from $74.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group raised Unum Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Unum Group from $54.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Unum Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $75.45.

Unum Group Company 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.