Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Sells 25,351 Shares of Unum Group $UNM

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp trimmed its position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 127,142 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 25,351 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $9,889,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in UNM. TrueMark Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the 2nd quarter worth $5,063,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 53.5% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 69,128 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,376,000 after acquiring an additional 24,101 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio lifted its stake in Unum Group by 12.2% in the second quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 44,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,583,000 after acquiring an additional 4,814 shares during the period. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Unum Group in the third quarter worth about $14,644,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Unum Group by 22.1% during the 2nd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 126,330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,202,000 after acquiring an additional 22,863 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Steven Andrew Zabel sold 7,500 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were 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 directly owned 113,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,692,578.66. The trade was a 6.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Walter Lynn Rice, Jr. sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.50, for a total value of $66,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,940 shares in the company, valued at approximately $657,090. The trade was a 9.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,400 shares of company stock valued at $951,160. Insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on UNM shares. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Unum Group in a report on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $85.00 target price on Unum Group in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Unum Group from $98.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.08.

Unum Group Stock Up 0.6%

Unum Group stock opened at $76.30 on Thursday. Unum Group has a 1-year low of $66.81 and a 1-year high of $84.48. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $77.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $75.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.87, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.20.

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

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, December 4th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.87%.

About Unum Group

Unum Group (NYSE: UNM) is a leading provider of employee benefits in the United States and selected international markets, specializing in disability, life, accident and critical illness insurance. Through both fully insured and self-funded arrangements, the company offers group coverage designed to protect income and mitigate financial hardship for employees and their families. Its portfolio includes short-term and long-term disability plans, group life and accidental death & dismemberment (AD&D) policies, as well as critical illness and hospital indemnity products.

In addition to its core product lines, Unum Group markets voluntary benefits under its Colonial Life brand, allowing employees to purchase supplemental insurance such as accident, cancer, and dental coverage directly through payroll deductions.