Short Interest in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Expands By 27.5%

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,460,000 shares, a growth of 27.5% from the October 31st total of 1,930,000 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,290,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.9 days.

Unum Group Trading Down 0.2 %

UNM traded down $0.17 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $76.90. 459,395 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,253,639. Unum Group has a one year low of $42.09 and a one year high of $77.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.32, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.76. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $65.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $57.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.28.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 13.76% and a return on equity of 15.21%. The business’s revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.94 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 25th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.18%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In other news, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 3,250 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $227,565.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 50,762 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,554,355.24. The trade was a 6.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.16, for a total value of $320,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 58,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,768,822.56. This trade represents a 7.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 165,709 shares of company stock worth $10,956,914 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Unum Group by 1.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,500,508 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $326,950,000 after purchasing an additional 55,014 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 89.8% during the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,207,756 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $61,728,000 after buying an additional 571,436 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Unum Group by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,186,262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $70,511,000 after buying an additional 66,392 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its stake in Unum Group by 8.0% in the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 872,808 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,609,000 after buying an additional 64,661 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its position in Unum Group by 151.7% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 509,702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,297,000 after acquiring an additional 307,175 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised shares of Unum Group from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $67.00 to $84.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Unum Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $66.00 target price (up from $64.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.73.

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.