Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Shares Sold by Two Sigma Investments LP

Two Sigma Investments LP reduced its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 53.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 325,921 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 372,116 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP owned 0.18% of Unum Group worth $23,802,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Teza Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Unum Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,963,000. State of Wyoming raised its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 61.0% during the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 11,074 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $809,000 after buying an additional 4,196 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Global Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Global Advisors LLC now owns 32,344 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,362,000 after buying an additional 1,488 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 219,377 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,021,000 after buying an additional 23,461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,810,000. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Unum Group Price Performance

NYSE UNM opened at $80.37 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.38. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $48.38 and a 1 year high of $84.48. The business’s fifty day moving average is $78.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $76.06. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.19 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.34 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 14.91%. Unum Group’s quarterly revenue was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.12 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 25th were issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.09%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Unum Group news, 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 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $579,250.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 67,000 shares of company stock worth $5,478,750. Corporate insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on UNM shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Unum Group from $103.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Unum Group from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com cut Unum Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Raymond James raised Unum Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Unum Group from $76.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Unum Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.43.

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.