Tidal Investments LLC Acquires 28,580 Shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 80.7% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 64,008 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 28,580 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $3,436,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Unum Group by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 68,435 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,095,000 after buying an additional 6,255 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Unum Group by 102.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,021 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $148,000 after acquiring an additional 1,526 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 301.8% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 8,189 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $370,000 after purchasing an additional 6,151 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in Unum Group by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $108,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Unum Group by 5,728.7% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 221,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,997,000 after purchasing an additional 217,288 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of UNM stock traded down $0.86 on Thursday, reaching $56.67. 322,990 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,264,888. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $51.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $50.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.73 billion, a PE ratio of 8.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Unum Group has a 52 week low of $41.75 and a 52 week high of $58.17.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last issued its earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.23 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 10.40% and a return on equity of 15.80%. The business’s revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.06 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.25 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 26th. This is a positive change from Unum Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.96%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on UNM. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Unum Group from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.44.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Timothy F. Keaney sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.61, for a total value of $420,880.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 37,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,973,138.05. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.47, for a total value of $236,115.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 56,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,952,067.14. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Timothy F. Keaney sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now directly owns 37,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,973,138.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

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.