J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Sells 549 Shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 7.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,627 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 549 shares during the quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $484,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UNM. Barrett & Company Inc. raised its holdings in Unum Group by 300.0% in the 4th quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 396 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Unum Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Quarry LP raised its holdings in Unum Group by 4,794.7% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 930 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 911 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Unum Group by 26.4% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 766 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the period. Finally, Live Oak Investment Partners bought a new position in Unum Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $58,000. 86.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Unum Group from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $79.00 target price (up previously from $74.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Unum Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Unum Group from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Unum Group from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $67.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.17.

Insider Activity at Unum Group

In other news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the firm’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 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. This trade represents a 15.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.93% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNM opened at $74.99 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $13.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.92, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.55. Unum Group has a one year low of $48.38 and a one year high of $79.43.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.14 by ($0.11). Unum Group had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 14.91%. Research analysts predict that Unum Group will post 9.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Unum Group’s payout ratio is 17.74%.

Unum Group declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 18th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.