The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Acquires New Position in Unum Group $UNM

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 226,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $20,251,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GWN Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 2nd quarter worth $708,000. UBS Group AG grew its position in Unum Group by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,356,916 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $105,161,000 after acquiring an additional 68,957 shares during the last quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP grew its position in Unum Group by 245.9% in the fourth quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP now owns 106,742 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,273,000 after acquiring an additional 75,885 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new position in Unum Group during the fourth quarter worth about $2,567,000. Finally, Swedbank AB raised its stake in Unum Group by 148.3% during the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 467,505 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,232,000 after acquiring an additional 279,233 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Unum Group from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $88.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $106.00 price objective on shares of Unum Group in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Unum Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unum Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $99.42.

Unum Group Stock Performance

Shares of Unum Group stock opened at $92.45 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $14.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.26. Unum Group has a twelve month low of $68.70 and a twelve month high of $94.55. The company’s fifty day moving average is $89.34 and its 200 day moving average is $82.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.16. Unum Group had a return on equity of 12.60% and a net margin of 5.26%.The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.92 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Unum Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.600-8.900 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.64 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, August 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 24th were given a dividend of $0.505 per share. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is a positive change from Unum Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 24th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is 47.09%.

About Unum Group

Unum Group (NYSE: UNM) is a leading provider of employee benefits in the United States and selected international markets, specializing in disability, life, accident and critical illness insurance. Through both fully insured and self-funded arrangements, the company offers group coverage designed to protect income and mitigate financial hardship for employees and their families. Its portfolio includes short-term and long-term disability plans, group life and accidental death & dismemberment (AD&D) policies, as well as critical illness and hospital indemnity products.

In addition to its core product lines, Unum Group markets voluntary benefits under its Colonial Life brand, allowing employees to purchase supplemental insurance such as accident, cancer, and dental coverage directly through payroll deductions.