Concentric Capital Strategies LP Acquires New Shares in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Concentric Capital Strategies LP bought a new position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 23,508 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,717,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in UNM. Barrett & Company Inc. grew its position in Unum Group by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 396 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its position in shares of Unum Group by 28.8% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Unum Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Unum Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Unum Group from $103.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Unum Group from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Raymond James raised Unum Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $108.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Unum Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.50.

Unum Group Price Performance

UNM stock opened at $80.55 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.51, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.38. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $78.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $74.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Unum Group has a 12-month low of $48.38 and a 12-month high of $84.48.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.19 by ($0.15). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. The business had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.12 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.79%.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 18th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In other news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $80,402,427.63. The trade was a 4.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,588,751. This trade represents a 18.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group 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.