North Dakota State Investment Board Purchases 7,860 Shares of Unum Group $UNM

North Dakota State Investment Board raised its position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 159.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,860 shares during the quarter. North Dakota State Investment Board’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $1,123,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Unum Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. CX Institutional lifted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 57.8% in the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. City State Bank bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $47,000. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Unum Group news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.44, for a total value of $377,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 25,453 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,403,781.32. This trade represents a 13.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Walter Lynn Rice, Jr. sold 2,188 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.31, for a total value of $206,350.28. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 8,154 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $769,003.74. This represents a 21.16% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 10,488 shares of company stock worth $988,396. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNM opened at $91.21 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $92.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.95. Unum Group has a 1-year low of $69.02 and a 1-year high of $96.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.02, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.25. 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 (NYSE:UNM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16. Unum Group had a net margin of 5.26% and a return on equity of 12.60%. The company had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.92 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 8.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, August 26th that allows the company to repurchase $1 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Share repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, October 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.5050 per share. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is 47.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Atlantic Securities set a $88.00 target price on Unum Group in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Unum Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $106.00 price target on shares of Unum Group in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. UBS Group set a $94.00 price objective on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $110.00 to $109.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unum Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $99.42.

About Unum Group

Unum Group is an insurance company that provides employee benefits and related protection products through employers, as well as selected individual policies. Its offerings are designed to help people manage the financial impact of illness, injury, death and other unexpected events.

The company’s products include short-term and long-term disability insurance, group and individual life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment coverage, and supplemental health benefits such as accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity insurance.