Head-To-Head Contrast: Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) and Globe Life (NYSE:GL)

Globe Life (NYSE:GL) and Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, profitability, risk and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Globe Life and Unum Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Globe Life	18.33%	21.44%	3.79%
Unum Group	12.31%	14.17%	2.46%

Risk & Volatility

Globe Life has a beta of 0.56, suggesting that its stock price is 44% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Unum Group has a beta of 0.41, suggesting that its stock price is 59% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

81.6% of Globe Life shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 86.6% of Unum Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.5% of Globe Life shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.9% of Unum Group shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Globe Life and Unum Group”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Globe Life	$5.78 billion	1.75	$1.07 billion	$12.29	9.94
Unum Group	$12.89 billion	1.10	$1.78 billion	$8.49	9.55

Unum Group has higher revenue and earnings than Globe Life. Unum Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Globe Life, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings for Globe Life and Unum Group, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Globe Life	0	3	7	1	2.82
Unum Group	0	4	9	1	2.79

Globe Life currently has a consensus price target of $143.82, indicating a potential upside of 17.69%. Unum Group has a consensus price target of $90.14, indicating a potential upside of 11.16%. Given Globe Life’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Globe Life is more favorable than Unum Group.

Dividends

Globe Life pays an annual dividend of $1.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. Unum Group pays an annual dividend of $1.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Globe Life pays out 8.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Unum Group pays out 19.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Globe Life has increased its dividend for 20 consecutive years and Unum Group has increased its dividend for 16 consecutive years.

Summary

Globe Life beats Unum Group on 12 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Globe Life

Globe Life Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides various life and supplemental health insurance products, and annuities to lower middle- and middle-income families in the United States. The company operates in four segments: Life Insurance, Supplemental Health Insurance, Annuities, and Investments. It offers whole, term, and other life insurance products; Medicare supplement and supplemental health insurance products, such as accident, cancer, critical illness, heart, and intensive care plans; and single-premium and flexible-premium deferred annuities. The company sells its products through its direct to consumer division, exclusive agencies, and independent agents. The company was formerly known as Torchmark Corporation and changed its name to Globe Life Inc. in August 2019. Globe Life Inc. was founded in 1900 and is headquartered in McKinney, Texas.

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. It also provides group pension, individual life and corporate-owned life insurance, reinsurance pools and management operations, and other miscellaneous products. The company sells its products primarily to employers for the benefit of employees. It sells its products through field sales personnel, independent brokers, consultants, and independent contractor agent sales force and brokers. Unum Group was founded in 1848 and is based in Chattanooga, Tennessee.