Morgan Stanley Increases Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Price Target to $52.00

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) had its price target upped by Morgan Stanley from $50.00 to $52.00 in a research note released on Monday, Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on UNM. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. StockNews.com upgraded Unum Group from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Unum Group has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $56.38.

Unum Group Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE UNM opened at $49.95 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $50.77 and a 200 day moving average of $47.53. The company has a market capitalization of $9.59 billion, a PE ratio of 7.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $39.71 and a 1 year high of $54.57.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.14 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 10.36% and a return on equity of 16.03%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.43 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th will be issued a $0.365 dividend. This represents a $1.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. Unum Group’s payout ratio is 22.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.15, for a total value of $2,457,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,076,753 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,922,409.95. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.15, for a total value of $2,457,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,076,753 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,922,409.95. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $250,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,450 shares in the company, valued at $2,772,500. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 81,000 shares of company stock worth $4,018,100. Insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 664 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.