Hennessy Advisors Inc. Increases Holdings in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 44.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 106,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 32,400 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. owned about 0.06% of Unum Group worth $5,688,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. DGS Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Unum Group by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 34,586 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,856,000 after purchasing an additional 1,437 shares during the period. Lane & Associates LLC purchased a new position in Unum Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $244,000. D. Scott Neal Inc. purchased a new position in Unum Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $12,071,000. Paragon Capital Management Ltd purchased a new position in Unum Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $212,000. Finally, BTC Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Unum Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $5,157,000. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Unum Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unum Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.44.

Unum Group Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:UNM traded up $0.29 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $50.72. 1,069,090 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,268,219. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $51.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $49.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.83. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $41.75 and a 1 year high of $54.57. 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 (NYSE:UNM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.20 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 16.02% and a net margin of 10.52%. The company’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.87 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Unum Group will post 8.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 17th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th were given a dividend of $0.365 per share. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 25th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.69%.

Insider Activity at Unum Group

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

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.