Man Group plc Takes $6.96 Million Position in Unum Group $UNM

Man Group plc purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 77,861 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,961,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UNM. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. SHP Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Unum Group by 385.2% in the third quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 427 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports 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. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Unum Group from $117.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Unum Group from $101.00 to $98.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Atlantic Securities set a $88.00 price target on Unum Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Unum Group from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $99.42.

Unum Group Stock Performance

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

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.16. Unum Group had a return on equity of 12.60% and a net margin of 5.26%.The company had revenue of $3.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.92 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Unum Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.600-8.900 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, August 26th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board 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 issued a $0.505 dividend. This is an increase from Unum Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 24th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is 47.09%.

Unum Group Company Profile

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.