JPMorgan Chase & Co. Decreases Stake in Unum Group $UNM

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its holdings in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 667,619 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 29,394 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $51,927,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group in the second quarter worth about $1,113,353,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in Unum Group by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 5,734,937 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $446,063,000 after purchasing an additional 223,095 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Unum Group by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,777,880 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $293,837,000 after purchasing an additional 179,401 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in Unum Group by 63.7% during the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 2,516,126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $195,704,000 after purchasing an additional 978,937 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Unum Group by 35.1% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,339,289 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $181,622,000 after purchasing an additional 607,684 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.00, for a total transaction of $255,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 29,453 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,150,069. This represents a 10.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 4,852 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.47, for a total transaction of $351,624.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 52,268 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,787,861.96. This trade represents a 8.49% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 21,852 shares of company stock valued at $1,590,734 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on UNM shares. Citigroup reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Unum Group in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Evercore set a $103.00 price target on shares of Unum Group in a report on Friday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Unum Group in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Unum Group from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.40.

Unum Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNM stock opened at $72.49 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $11.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.06, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.20. The business has a 50 day moving average of $74.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $75.62. Unum Group has a 52 week low of $66.81 and a 52 week high of $84.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.11 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.29 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 5.65%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.03 EPS. Unum Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.600-8.900 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, December 4th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.29%.

Unum Group Profile

Unum Group (NYSE: UNM) is a leading provider of employee benefits in the United States and selected international markets, specializing in disability, life, accident and critical illness insurance. Through both fully insured and self-funded arrangements, the company offers group coverage designed to protect income and mitigate financial hardship for employees and their families. Its portfolio includes short-term and long-term disability plans, group life and accidental death & dismemberment (AD&D) policies, as well as critical illness and hospital indemnity products.

In addition to its core product lines, Unum Group markets voluntary benefits under its Colonial Life brand, allowing employees to purchase supplemental insurance such as accident, cancer, and dental coverage directly through payroll deductions.