Millennium Management LLC Sells 377,862 Shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Millennium Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 31.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 838,806 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 377,862 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC owned about 0.45% of Unum Group worth $42,871,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Unum Group by 361.5% during 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 in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the first quarter worth about $28,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the first quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of UNM stock opened at $58.88 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $55.02 and a 200 day moving average of $52.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market cap of $11.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.75, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.77. Unum Group has a twelve month low of $41.75 and a twelve month high of $59.44.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.14. Unum Group had a return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 10.40%. The company had revenue of $3.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.06 earnings per share. Unum Group’s quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Unum Group will post 8.48 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a $0.42 dividend. This is a positive change from Unum Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.96%.

Unum Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 30th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on UNM. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. Barclays assumed coverage on Unum Group in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Unum Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Unum Group from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price objective on Unum Group from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Unum Group

In other Unum Group news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.11, for a total value of $541,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,821 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,507,464.31. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.98, for a total value of $3,727,369.10. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,065,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,601,422.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.11, for a total value of $541,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,821 shares in the company, valued at $3,507,464.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.93% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Unum Group Company Profile

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.