Bridgewater Associates LP Raises Stock Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Bridgewater Associates LP lifted its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 32.0% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 226,149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 54,880 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $13,442,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Unum Group by 361.5% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Unum Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Unum Group during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in Unum Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unum Group Stock Performance

NYSE:UNM opened at $77.07 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $65.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $57.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $14.07 billion, a PE ratio of 8.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.76. Unum Group has a fifty-two week low of $41.97 and a fifty-two week high of $77.20.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 13.76%. Unum Group’s revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.94 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Unum Group will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 25th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 25th. Unum Group’s payout ratio is currently 18.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNM has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Unum Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Unum Group from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $67.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $66.00 price target (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Unum Group from $54.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.73.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In related news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.16, for a total value of $320,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 58,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,768,822.56. The trade was a 7.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 3,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction of $227,565.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 50,762 shares in the company, valued at $3,554,355.24. This represents a 6.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 165,709 shares of company stock valued at $10,956,914 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

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.