JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Stock Holdings in Unum Group $UNM

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 667,619 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 29,394 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 0.39% of Unum Group worth $51,927,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Unum Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,113,353,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 7.0% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,341,589 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $271,862,000 after buying an additional 219,076 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 63.7% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 2,516,126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $195,704,000 after buying an additional 978,937 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its position in shares of Unum Group by 18.4% during the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,125,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $90,855,000 after acquiring an additional 175,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Neuberger Berman Group LLC raised its holdings in Unum Group by 66.4% in the 2nd quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 760,765 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $61,439,000 after acquiring an additional 303,500 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNM has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group dropped their price target on Unum Group from $85.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Unum Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Evercore set a $103.00 price objective on shares of Unum Group in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $85.00 target price on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Unum Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $96.58.

Unum Group Stock Up 1.3%

NYSE UNM opened at $72.54 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $76.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $75.26. Unum Group has a one year low of $66.81 and a one year high of $84.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.37. The company has a market capitalization of $11.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.20.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.29 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 5.65%.Unum Group’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.03 EPS. Unum Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.600-8.900 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is 43.29%.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Cynthia Egan sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.00, for a total transaction of $657,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 42,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,127,758. This trade represents a 17.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available 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 shares were sold at an average price of $73.50, for a total transaction of $66,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 8,940 shares in the company, valued at $657,090. This represents a 9.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 14,400 shares of company stock worth $1,049,760 in the last ninety days. 0.92% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.