Stock Buyback Plan Declared by Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, December 4th, RTT News reports. The company plans to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $79.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Unum Group from $94.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Barclays increased their price objective on Unum Group from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Unum Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.67.

Unum Group Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of Unum Group stock traded up $0.98 during trading on Friday, reaching $74.32. The stock had a trading volume of 1,317,865 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,142,491. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $76.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $76.39. Unum Group has a 52 week low of $66.81 and a 52 week high of $84.48. The company has a market capitalization of $12.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by ($0.06). Unum Group had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 13.09%. The company had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.13 EPS. Unum Group’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 24th were paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 24th. Unum Group’s payout ratio is currently 35.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In related news, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.04, for a total transaction of $312,160.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 51,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,009,070.88. This trade represents a 7.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Steven Andrew Zabel sold 7,500 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.38, for a total transaction of $572,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 113,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,692,578.66. This trade represents a 6.18% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.92% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.