Tounjian Advisory Partners LLC Acquires Shares of 11,018 Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Tounjian Advisory Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 11,018 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $897,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in Unum Group by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,536 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $478,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its position in Unum Group by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 18,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,330,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Unum Group by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $974,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Unum Group by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 9,151 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $668,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the period. Finally, Sculati Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Unum Group by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,901 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,841,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unum Group Trading Down 1.3%

NYSE UNM opened at $80.43 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market cap of $14.02 billion, a PE ratio of 8.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $78.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $77.03. Unum Group has a 52 week low of $48.38 and a 52 week high of $84.48.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.19 by ($0.15). The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.34 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. The company’s revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.12 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is 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 paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. Unum Group’s payout ratio is 19.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In other Unum Group news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $800,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 51,170 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,093,600. This represents a 16.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on UNM. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Unum Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Unum Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Unum Group from $103.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Unum Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $88.29.

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.