Federated Hermes Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Federated Hermes Inc. reduced its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 5.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 38,834 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,456 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $1,756,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated acquired a new position in Unum Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Bangor Savings Bank grew its position in shares of Unum Group by 100.0% during the third quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 664 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on UNM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. StockNews.com raised Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Unum Group from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were 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 $52,922,409.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Unum Group news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.15, for a total transaction of $2,457,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,076,753 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,922,409.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Steven Andrew Zabel sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.06, for a total value of $510,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 122,246 shares in the company, valued at $6,241,880.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 81,000 shares of company stock worth $4,018,100. Insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Stock Performance

NYSE UNM opened at $51.01 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $51.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.66. The company has a market capitalization of $9.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.86, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.87. Unum Group has a 1-year low of $40.04 and a 1-year high of $54.57. 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 (NYSE:UNM) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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). Unum Group had a net margin of 10.36% and a return on equity of 16.03%. The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.43 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Unum Group will post 8.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.365 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $1.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.86%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.50%.

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.