American Century Companies Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

American Century Companies Inc. lowered its position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 229,761 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 19,956 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of Unum Group worth $11,743,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in Unum Group by 361.5% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Unum Group in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new position in Unum Group in the first quarter worth about $28,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Unum Group in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unum Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE UNM opened at $57.35 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $10.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.77. Unum Group has a 52-week low of $41.75 and a 52-week high of $58.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.28. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $54.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.68.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $3.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.23 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 10.40%. The business’s revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.06 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. This is a boost from Unum Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is 24.96%.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on UNM. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Unum Group from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Unum Group from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Unum Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $62.90.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 67,795 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were 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 owns 1,065,868 shares in the company, valued at $58,601,422.64. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Unum Group news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the company’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 transaction of $541,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,821 shares in the company, valued at $3,507,464.31. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,065,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,601,422.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

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.