Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Rating Increased to Outperform at Evercore ISI

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) was upgraded by equities researchers at Evercore ISI from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report released on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has a $84.00 target price on the financial services provider’s stock, up from their previous target price of $67.00. Evercore ISI’s price objective points to a potential upside of 14.76% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on UNM. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Unum Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Truist Financial increased their target price on Unum Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $66.00 price target (up from $64.00) on shares of Unum Group in a report on Friday, September 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.73.

Unum Group Stock Performance

NYSE:UNM opened at $73.20 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $61.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $55.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market cap of $13.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.92, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.76. Unum Group has a 1-year low of $41.86 and a 1-year high of $73.24.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.03. Unum Group had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 13.76%. The firm had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.94 earnings per share. Unum Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Unum Group will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Unum Group news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.16, for a total value of $320,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,768,822.56. The trade was a 7.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total transaction of $3,727,369.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,065,868 shares in the company, valued at $58,601,422.64. The trade was a 5.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 91,844 shares of company stock valued at $5,411,032. 0.93% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Unum Group by 361.5% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Unum Group in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Unum Group during the second quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. 86.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.