Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Issues Positive Forecast for Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Stock Price

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) had its target price raised by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $88.00 to $90.00 in a report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on UNM. StockNews.com downgraded Unum Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Unum Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Evercore ISI upgraded Unum Group from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $67.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Unum Group from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Unum Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.33.

Unum Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNM opened at $75.18 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.29. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $74.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $65.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.80. Unum Group has a 52 week low of $47.65 and a 52 week high of $79.43.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by ($0.11). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. Equities analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 9.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. Unum Group’s payout ratio is currently 17.74%.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In related news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.61, for a total value of $363,050.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 35,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,602,342.40. This represents a 12.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.92, for a total value of $769,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 54,827 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,217,292.84. This represents a 15.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 83,865 shares of company stock valued at $6,315,082. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNM. Barrett & Company Inc. increased its stake in Unum Group by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 396 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Unum Group during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in shares of Unum Group during the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 38.2% during the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

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.