Analysts Set Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Price Target at $56.38

Shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $56.38.

UNM has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on 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 lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of UNM stock opened at $51.01 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.87. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $51.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.66. Unum Group has a one year low of $40.04 and a one year high of $54.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27.

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

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a $0.365 dividend. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. Unum Group’s payout ratio is currently 22.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Unum Group news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $250,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,450 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,772,500. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.15, for a total value of $2,457,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,076,753 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,922,409.95. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,772,500. 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. 0.93% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Unum Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UNM. CWM LLC lifted its position in Unum Group by 65.3% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,592 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $226,000 after acquiring an additional 1,814 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Unum Group by 45.8% in the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,038 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $98,000 after buying an additional 640 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in Unum Group by 679.4% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 32,298 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,589,000 after buying an additional 28,154 shares during the period. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in Unum Group by 120.6% during the 3rd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,639 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 896 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 15,791 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $777,000 after acquiring an additional 1,376 shares during the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.