South Dakota Investment Council Sells 1,500 Shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

South Dakota Investment Council lessened its holdings in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 245,849 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,500 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $17,954,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Unum Group by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,500,508 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $326,950,000 after purchasing an additional 55,014 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 50.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 469,342 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,554,000 after acquiring an additional 156,380 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 16,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,205,000 after acquiring an additional 5,047 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in shares of Unum Group by 89.5% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 111,831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,647,000 after acquiring an additional 52,813 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the 3rd quarter worth $1,074,000. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Unum Group news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.92, for a total value of $769,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 54,827 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,217,292.84. The trade was a 15.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.93% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Unum Group Stock Performance

Shares of Unum Group stock opened at $74.07 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $13.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.82, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.80. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $74.28 and its 200 day moving average is $66.85. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $48.38 and a 1 year high of $79.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.28.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by ($0.11). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 18th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on UNM. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Unum Group from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $76.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $81.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten 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 $81.17.

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.