DGS Capital Management LLC Raises Stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

DGS Capital Management LLC raised its position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 37,677 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 715 shares during the period. Unum Group accounts for 0.7% of DGS Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. DGS Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $2,752,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Unum Group by 26.4% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 766 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its position in shares of Unum Group by 28.8% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,551 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $330,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in shares of Unum Group by 38.2% during the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its stake in Unum Group by 3.1% during the third quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 6,592 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $392,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on UNM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $79.00 price target (up from $74.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Unum Group from $74.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. UBS Group upgraded Unum Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Unum Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $76.75.

Unum Group Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE:UNM opened at $75.01 on Friday. Unum Group has a 12-month low of $46.39 and a 12-month high of $77.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $73.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.67. The firm has a market cap of $13.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.12, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.81.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.26 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 13.76% and a return on equity of 15.21%. Unum Group’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.94 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 8.54 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.92, for a total transaction of $769,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 54,827 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,217,292.84. This represents a 15.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.16, for a total transaction of $320,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 58,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,768,822.56. This represents a 7.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 107,914 shares of company stock worth $7,998,745. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

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.