Portland Global Advisors LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Portland Global Advisors LLC decreased its position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 32.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,278 shares during the quarter. Portland Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $345,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Unum Group by 188.1% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,829 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $168,000 after acquiring an additional 1,847 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. boosted its position in shares of Unum Group by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 62,491 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,714,000 after purchasing an additional 8,186 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 57.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 71,667 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,260,000 after buying an additional 26,010 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its position in Unum Group by 95.7% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 20,926 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,244,000 after buying an additional 10,235 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Unum Group by 75.6% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 116,033 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,897,000 after buying an additional 49,960 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $579,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,588,751. The trade was a 18.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.99, for a total transaction of $4,099,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 980,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,402,427.63. The trade was a 4.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.93% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Unum Group Trading Down 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE:UNM opened at $79.95 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $77.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $71.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.44, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.74. Unum Group has a 52-week low of $48.38 and a 52-week high of $84.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.29.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by ($0.11). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. Analysts expect that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Unum Group from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Unum Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $108.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $81.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $79.00 price objective (up from $74.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.62.

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.