Oak Thistle LLC Trims Holdings in Unum Group $UNM

Oak Thistle LLC lowered its stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 31.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,574 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $1,287,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNM. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Unum Group during the fourth quarter worth $247,000. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 0.3% in the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 60,370 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,918,000 after buying an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the 1st quarter valued at $355,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Unum Group by 29.5% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 389,554 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,733,000 after acquiring an additional 88,747 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Unum Group by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 290,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $23,654,000 after acquiring an additional 21,770 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Stock Up 0.5%

UNM stock opened at $77.88 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $75.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $76.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.18, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.20. Unum Group has a fifty-two week low of $66.81 and a fifty-two week high of $84.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.15 by ($0.06). Unum Group had a return on equity of 13.09% and a net margin of 6.99%.The firm had revenue of $3.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.13 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 24th were paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 24th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Unum Group’s payout ratio is presently 35.87%.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 4th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on UNM. Morgan Stanley set a $85.00 target price on Unum Group in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $94.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Unum Group from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Unum Group from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.91.

Insider Activity at Unum Group

In other news, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.04, for a total value of $312,160.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 51,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,009,070.88. This represents a 7.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Walter Lynn Rice, Jr. sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.50, for a total value of $66,150.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,940 shares in the company, valued at $657,090. This trade represents a 9.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 12,400 shares of company stock valued at $951,160 over the last quarter. 0.92% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Unum Group 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.