Man Group plc Sells 223,738 Shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Man Group plc lessened its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 54.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 186,832 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 223,738 shares during the period. Man Group plc’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $13,644,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in Unum Group by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,536 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $478,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its holdings in Unum Group by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 18,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,330,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its holdings in Unum Group by 28.8% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Unum Group by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $974,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the period. Finally, Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Unum Group by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 9,151 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $668,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $800,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 51,170 shares in the company, valued at $4,093,600. This represents a 16.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 7,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,588,751. This represents a 18.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 67,000 shares of company stock valued at $5,478,750. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNM opened at $82.07 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $14.31 billion, a PE ratio of 8.67, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.38. 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 1-year low of $48.38 and a 1-year high of $84.48. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $78.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.78.

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

Unum Group declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 18th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th were paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 25th. Unum Group’s payout ratio is presently 19.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on UNM. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $75.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Raymond James raised shares of Unum Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $103.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Five research 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.50.

About Unum Group

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.