Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) shares gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday after Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on the stock from $108.00 to $97.00. The stock had previously closed at $91.03, but opened at $75.00. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Unum Group shares last traded at $75.01, with a volume of 1,119,738 shares traded.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Atlantic Securities set a $88.00 target price on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $117.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Unum Group from $96.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $101.00 to $98.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Eight research 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, Unum Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In other news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 4,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.44, for a total transaction of $377,760.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 25,453 shares in the company, valued at $2,403,781.32. The trade was a 13.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Walter Lynn Rice, Jr. sold 2,188 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.31, for a total transaction of $206,350.28. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,154 shares in the company, valued at approximately $769,003.74. The trade was a 21.16% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 10,488 shares of company stock worth $988,396 in the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Unum Group News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Unum Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Unum’s Q3 results beat estimates, with premium growth and investment income providing support; Colonial Life was also highlighted as a source of strength. Elevated disability claims remain a headwind. UNM Q3 Earnings Beat Estimates on Premium Growth and Investment Income
• Neutral Sentiment: Although KBW lowered its target to $97 and Truist cut its target to $85, both firms retained positive ratings—“outperform” and “buy,” respectively. Their revisions may temper optimism, even as the targets remain above the share price cited in the reports. KBW Cuts Unum Price Target Truist Lowers Unum Price Target
• Negative Sentiment: Reports say Unum recorded a $419.7 million Q3 net loss and disclosed an SEC comment-letter process and a change in reserve methodology. The disclosures have prompted shareholder-law-firm investigations; these are investigations, not findings of wrongdoing, but add uncertainty. Investor Investigation Notice
• Negative Sentiment: Unum shares reportedly fell below their 200-day moving average following an analyst downgrade, a technical signal that may reinforce selling pressure. Unum Shares Break Below 200-Day Average

Institutional Trading of Unum Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,084,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $298,287,000 after acquiring an additional 292,670 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $84,097,000. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. purchased a new stake in Unum Group during the second quarter worth approximately $58,064,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Unum Group during the second quarter worth approximately $55,273,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Unum Group by 14.6% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 754,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $55,089,000 after purchasing an additional 96,123 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $91.64 and a 200-day moving average of $84.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.25.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The financial services provider reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 1.94% and a return on equity of 12.57%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Unum Group will post 8.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, October 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.5050 per share. This represents a $2.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 30th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 143.26%.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, August 26th that authorizes the company to buy back $1 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About Unum Group

Unum Group is an insurance company that provides employee benefits and related protection products through employers, as well as selected individual policies. Its offerings are designed to help people manage the financial impact of illness, injury, death and other unexpected events.

The company’s products include short-term and long-term disability insurance, group and individual life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment coverage, and supplemental health benefits such as accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity insurance.