Westover Capital Advisors LLC Buys 7,359 Shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Westover Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 137.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 12,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,359 shares during the period. Westover Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $574,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Unum Group in the 3rd quarter worth $1,019,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in Unum Group by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 29,507 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,451,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its position in Unum Group by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 51,041 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,511,000 after purchasing an additional 1,318 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Unum Group by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 34,404 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,692,000 after buying an additional 559 shares during the period. Finally, FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Unum Group by 125.9% in the 3rd quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,229 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 685 shares during the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Unum Group

In other Unum Group news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,450 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,772,500. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Unum Group news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,772,500. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.15, for a total value of $2,457,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,076,753 shares in the company, valued at $52,922,409.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 81,000 shares of company stock valued at $4,018,100. 0.93% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on UNM. StockNews.com upgraded Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Unum Group from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.38.

Unum Group Stock Up 0.1 %

UNM traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $51.93. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 795,610 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,401,464. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $41.75 and a 1 year high of $54.57. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $51.47 and its 200-day moving average is $47.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.68, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.20 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 10.52%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.87 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Unum Group will post 8.18 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th will be paid a $0.365 dividend. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. Unum Group’s payout ratio is 21.69%.

Unum Group 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.