Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Price Target Raised to $52.00

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) had its price target hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $50.00 to $52.00 in a report published on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Unum Group from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $56.38.

Unum Group Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE UNM opened at $50.16 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Unum Group has a 52 week low of $40.04 and a 52 week high of $54.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.63 billion, a PE ratio of 7.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $50.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.56.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.86 by ($0.07). Unum Group had a return on equity of 16.03% and a net margin of 10.36%. The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.43 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Unum Group will post 8.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a $0.365 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $1.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.50%.

Insider Activity at Unum Group

In related news, CFO Steven Andrew Zabel sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.06, for a total value of $510,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 122,246 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,241,880.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Unum Group news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.15, for a total transaction of $2,457,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,076,753 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,922,409.95. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Steven Andrew Zabel sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.06, for a total transaction of $510,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 122,246 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,241,880.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 81,000 shares of company stock worth $4,018,100 in the last 90 days. 0.77% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Unum Group

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 23,681,485 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $746,204,000 after purchasing an additional 836,407 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Unum Group by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,590,655 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $931,109,000 after acquiring an additional 300,840 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Unum Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $590,489,000. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Unum Group by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 12,585,614 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $619,086,000 after acquiring an additional 236,136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in Unum Group by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,106,074 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $241,749,000 after acquiring an additional 166,022 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

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.