Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Price Target Cut to $79.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) had its price objective decreased by Morgan Stanley from $85.00 to $79.00 in a research note published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Unum Group from $100.00 to $96.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Barclays set a $96.00 target price on Unum Group and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Unum Group from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group set a $87.00 price objective on Unum Group and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Unum Group from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Unum Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $91.15.

Unum Group Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE UNM opened at $68.57 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.20, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.40. Unum Group has a one year low of $52.71 and a one year high of $84.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The business’s fifty day moving average is $77.22 and its 200-day moving average is $78.08.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by ($0.16). Unum Group had a return on equity of 13.44% and a net margin of 11.77%. The business had revenue of $3.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.35 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.16 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, July 25th were paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 25th. This is a positive change from Unum Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Unum Group’s payout ratio is currently 22.01%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Unum Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNM. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 4.0% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $290,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 2.2% in the first quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 6,308 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $514,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. NDVR Inc. grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 3.3% in the second quarter. NDVR Inc. now owns 4,526 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $366,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 18,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,330,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Waterfront Wealth Inc. grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 0.5% in the second quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 29,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,370,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unum Group Company Profile

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.