Capstone Investment Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Unum Group $UNM

Capstone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 6,640 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $594,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UNM. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in Unum Group in the fourth quarter worth $247,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 157.4% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,851 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $149,000 after buying an additional 1,132 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Unum Group by 26.6% in the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,939 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $641,000 after buying an additional 1,666 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its stake in shares of Unum Group by 13.2% in the 2nd quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 6,445 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $520,000 after acquiring an additional 753 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cresset Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Unum Group by 6.1% in the 2nd quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 6,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $542,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Stock Performance

UNM stock opened at $93.16 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $89.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Unum Group has a 12-month low of $68.70 and a 12-month high of $94.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.75 billion, a PE ratio of 21.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.26.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16. Unum Group had a return on equity of 12.60% and a net margin of 5.26%.The business had revenue of $3.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.92 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Unum Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.600-8.900 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, August 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 24th were given a $0.505 dividend. This is a positive change from Unum Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 24th. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Unum Group’s payout ratio is presently 47.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Unum Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Unum Group from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Wolfe Research dropped their price target on Unum Group from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Unum Group from $101.00 to $98.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Unum Group from $117.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $99.42.

About Unum Group

Unum Group (NYSE: UNM) is a leading provider of employee benefits in the United States and selected international markets, specializing in disability, life, accident and critical illness insurance. Through both fully insured and self-funded arrangements, the company offers group coverage designed to protect income and mitigate financial hardship for employees and their families. Its portfolio includes short-term and long-term disability plans, group life and accidental death & dismemberment (AD&D) policies, as well as critical illness and hospital indemnity products.

In addition to its core product lines, Unum Group markets voluntary benefits under its Colonial Life brand, allowing employees to purchase supplemental insurance such as accident, cancer, and dental coverage directly through payroll deductions.