Retirement Systems of Alabama Purchases 88,524 Shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 20.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 521,727 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 88,524 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.27% of Unum Group worth $23,592,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the third quarter worth approximately $1,019,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 29,507 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,451,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Unum Group by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 51,041 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,511,000 after purchasing an additional 1,318 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 1.7% during the third quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 34,404 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,692,000 after purchasing an additional 559 shares during the period. Finally, Dakota Wealth Management increased its holdings in Unum Group by 77.0% in the third quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 71,333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,509,000 after purchasing an additional 31,034 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Unum Group

In other Unum Group news, 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,450 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,772,500. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now 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 this link. Also, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,450 shares in the company, valued at $2,772,500. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 81,000 shares of company stock worth $4,018,100. Insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on UNM shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.38.

Unum Group Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE:UNM opened at $51.01 on Tuesday. Unum Group has a twelve month low of $40.04 and a twelve month high of $54.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $51.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $47.66.

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

Unum Group Announces Dividend

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

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.