Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Raises Holdings in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 1.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 182,155 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,004 shares during the quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. owned approximately 0.10% of Unum Group worth $9,774,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UNM. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in shares of Unum Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Unum Group during the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Rise Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Unum Group by 93.8% in the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 814 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Unum Group by 363.7% during the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 946 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 742 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In other news, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.47, for a total transaction of $236,115.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 56,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,952,067.14. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Timothy F. Keaney sold 8,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.61, for a total transaction of $420,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 37,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,973,138.05. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.47, for a total transaction of $236,115.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 56,262 shares in the company, valued at $2,952,067.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.93% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Unum Group in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $57.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial raised their target price on Unum Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Unum Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.56.

Unum Group Stock Performance

NYSE:UNM traded up $3.33 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $57.61. 1,181,942 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,258,260. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.81. Unum Group has a 1-year low of $41.75 and a 1-year high of $58.17. The company has a 50-day moving average of $51.77 and a 200 day moving average of $50.88.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $3.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.23 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 16.02% and a net margin of 10.52%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.06 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 8.25 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th will be given a $0.42 dividend. This is a boost from Unum Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.92%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.96%.

Unum Group 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.