Simplicity Wealth LLC Makes New Investment in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 5,645 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $303,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 416,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,466,000 after purchasing an additional 4,041 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,856,877 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $140,530,000 after purchasing an additional 71,561 shares in the last quarter. Capula Management Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 48.9% in the 3rd quarter. Capula Management Ltd now owns 9,920 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $488,000 after purchasing an additional 3,260 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 78.5% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 342,058 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,826,000 after purchasing an additional 150,454 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HM Payson & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 10.9% in the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 10,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $536,000 after purchasing an additional 1,070 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Unum Group Trading Down 1.0 %

Unum Group stock traded down $0.55 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $52.37. 843,970 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,314,030. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Unum Group has a 12 month low of $41.75 and a 12 month high of $54.57. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $52.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.78, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.87.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.15. Unum Group had a net margin of 10.52% and a return on equity of 16.02%. The firm had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.87 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.24 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th were given a dividend of $0.365 per share. This represents a $1.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 25th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on UNM. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Two investment 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 company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.38.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In other news, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 56,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,952,067.14. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $250,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,450 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,772,500. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 4,500 shares of Unum Group 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 56,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,952,067.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 93,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,675,095 in the last quarter. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.