Eastern Bank Makes New $226,000 Investment in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 3,802 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $226,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Unum Group by 51.7% during the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,961,539 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $158,590,000 after acquiring an additional 1,008,776 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 89.8% during the second quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,207,756 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,728,000 after buying an additional 571,436 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 62.9% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,119,870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $57,237,000 after buying an additional 432,240 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 8.0% during 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 9.5% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 413,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,127,000 after buying an additional 35,723 shares during the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Bank of America boosted their price target on Unum Group from $54.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Unum Group from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $66.00 price target (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Unum Group in a report on Friday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Unum Group from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Unum Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.64.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of UNM opened at $63.34 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $57.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.11. The company has a market capitalization of $12.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.28. Unum Group has a fifty-two week low of $41.75 and a fifty-two week high of $64.52.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.14. Unum Group had a net margin of 10.40% and a return on equity of 15.55%. The business had revenue of $3.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.06 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Unum Group will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 25th. Unum Group’s payout ratio is currently 24.96%.

Unum Group declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 30th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In other news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total transaction of $3,727,369.10. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,065,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,601,422.64. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.11, for a total value of $541,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,821 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,507,464.31. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total transaction of $3,727,369.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,065,868 shares in the company, valued at $58,601,422.64. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

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.