Skyline Advisors Inc. Invests $204,000 in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Skyline Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 2,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $204,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in Unum Group during the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in Unum Group during the 4th quarter valued at $58,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in Unum Group by 36.5% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 958 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 30.0% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,206 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $88,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Stock Performance

UNM stock opened at $78.81 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $78.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $77.04. The company has a market capitalization of $13.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.32, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Unum Group has a fifty-two week low of $48.38 and a fifty-two week high of $84.48.

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

Unum Group announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th were given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.79%.

Insider Activity at Unum Group

In other Unum Group news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 10,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 51,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,093,600. This trade represents a 16.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.92% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. 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 report on Wednesday, March 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $103.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $95.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Unum Group from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Unum Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $88.29.

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.