Millstone Evans Group LLC Invests $45,000 in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 620 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $45,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Unum Group by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,552,252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $405,481,000 after purchasing an additional 51,744 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Unum Group by 23.3% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,462,917 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $106,837,000 after buying an additional 276,655 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its stake in Unum Group by 44.9% during the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,264,994 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $92,383,000 after buying an additional 392,191 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Unum Group by 151.7% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 509,702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,297,000 after acquiring an additional 307,175 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Unum Group by 50.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 469,342 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,554,000 after acquiring an additional 156,380 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In other Unum Group news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $579,250.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,284 shares in the company, valued at $2,588,751. This represents a 18.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 980,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $80,402,427.63. The trade was a 4.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on UNM shares. StockNews.com lowered Unum Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Unum Group from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Unum Group from $90.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Raymond James raised Unum Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $108.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.62.

Unum Group Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:UNM opened at $81.54 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $14.41 billion, a PE ratio of 8.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.74. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $48.38 and a 1 year high of $83.96. 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 business has a fifty day moving average price of $76.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $70.46.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.14 by ($0.11). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. Analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.74%.

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.