NewSquare Capital LLC Grows Position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 228,132 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 10,021 shares during the quarter. Unum Group accounts for about 1.0% of NewSquare Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. NewSquare Capital LLC’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $10,177,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UNM. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in shares of Unum Group by 79.8% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,952,763 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $88,616,000 after buying an additional 866,531 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Unum Group by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 222,878 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,963,000 after buying an additional 28,898 shares during the period. Boone Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Unum Group by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Boone Capital Management LLC now owns 867,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,676,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its stake in Unum Group by 91.9% in the 3rd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 63,810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,138,000 after purchasing an additional 30,555 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Unum Group by 154.5% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 50,915 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,302,000 after purchasing an additional 30,908 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In other news, CFO Steven Andrew Zabel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.06, for a total transaction of $510,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 122,246 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,241,880.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Steven Andrew Zabel sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.06, for a total transaction of $510,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 122,246 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,241,880.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.15, for a total value of $2,457,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,076,753 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,922,409.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 81,000 shares of company stock worth $4,018,100. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on UNM shares. StockNews.com raised Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Unum Group from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Unum Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.38.

Unum Group Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of UNM traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $51.78. The company had a trading volume of 819,232 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,410,785. Unum Group has a 1-year low of $40.04 and a 1-year high of $54.57. The stock has a market cap of $9.94 billion, a PE ratio of 7.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $51.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.14 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 16.03% and a net margin of 10.36%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.43 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.365 per share. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.50%.

About Unum Group

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.