1,560,488 Shares in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Acquired by Balyasny Asset Management L.P.

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,560,488 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $113,962,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. owned 0.85% of Unum Group at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UNM. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Unum Group by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,497,586 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,496,939,000 after buying an additional 1,596,078 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,003,918,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted 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 worth $405,481,000 after acquiring an additional 51,744 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Unum Group by 33.2% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,930,349 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $140,973,000 after acquiring an additional 480,926 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Unum Group by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,708,452 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $124,768,000 after acquiring an additional 227,644 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,588,751. This trade represents a 18.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.99, for a total transaction of $4,099,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 980,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $80,402,427.63. This represents a 4.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.92% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Unum Group Stock Up 2.9 %

NYSE:UNM opened at $79.67 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $78.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $74.58. The firm has a market cap of $14.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.38. Unum Group has a fifty-two week low of $48.38 and a fifty-two week high of $84.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.29.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by ($0.15). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.12 earnings per share. Unum Group’s revenue was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors 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 2.11%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on UNM. StockNews.com cut shares of Unum Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group upped their target price on Unum Group from $75.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Unum Group from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Barclays upped their price target on Unum Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Unum Group from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Unum Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.50.

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.