Keynote Financial Services LLC Trims Stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Keynote Financial Services LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 9.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,959 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,835 shares during the quarter. Unum Group makes up 1.0% of Keynote Financial Services LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Keynote Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $1,312,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Unum Group by 1.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,500,508 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $326,950,000 after purchasing an additional 55,014 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Unum Group by 50.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 469,342 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,554,000 after buying an additional 156,380 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 44.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 16,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,205,000 after acquiring an additional 5,047 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in Unum Group by 89.5% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 111,831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,647,000 after acquiring an additional 52,813 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC bought a new stake in Unum Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,074,000. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $79.00 price target (up from $74.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Unum Group in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $91.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Unum Group from $81.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Unum Group from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Unum Group from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Unum Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $83.92.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of Unum Group stock opened at $82.27 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $15.02 billion, a PE ratio of 8.69, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $74.93 and a 200 day moving average of $67.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Unum Group has a 12 month low of $48.38 and a 12 month high of $83.96.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its earnings results 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 net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 14.91%. On average, research analysts expect that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.04%. Unum Group’s payout ratio is currently 17.74%.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 18th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.