Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Price Target Increased to $63.00 by Analysts at Bank of America

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) had its price objective hoisted by Bank of America from $54.00 to $63.00 in a research note released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. Bank of America currently has a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on UNM. Piper Sandler restated an overweight rating and issued a $66.00 price objective (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Unum Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Unum Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Unum Group from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an in-line rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Unum Group presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $63.64.

Unum Group Stock Performance

Unum Group stock opened at $62.73 on Thursday. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $41.75 and a 1 year high of $63.25. The company’s 50-day moving average is $56.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The company has a market cap of $11.65 billion, a PE ratio of 9.23, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.77.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $3.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.23 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 10.40% and a return on equity of 15.55%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.06 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.68%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.71%.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In other news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total value of $3,727,369.10. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,065,868 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,601,422.64. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.11, for a total value of $541,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 64,821 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,507,464.31. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total transaction of $3,727,369.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,065,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,601,422.64. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.93% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Unum Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 9,900.7% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 13,501 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $802,000 after purchasing an additional 13,366 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in Unum Group by 11.1% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,765 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital increased its holdings in Unum Group by 9.0% in the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 10,661 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $652,000 after purchasing an additional 881 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its stake in Unum Group by 38.7% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 14,296 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $850,000 after buying an additional 3,991 shares during the period. 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.