Unum Group Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.37 (NYSE:UNM)

by · The Cerbat Gem

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM – Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, April 12th, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a dividend of 0.365 per share by the financial services provider on Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.90%.

Unum Group has increased its dividend by an average of 6.8% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 15 consecutive years. Unum Group has a dividend payout ratio of 16.6% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Unum Group to earn $8.77 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.46 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 16.6%.

Unum Group Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of Unum Group stock opened at $50.30 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Unum Group has a 52-week low of $39.40 and a 52-week high of $54.57. The company has a market capitalization of $9.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a 50 day moving average of $50.72 and a 200 day moving average of $47.54.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.14 billion. Unum Group had a net margin of 10.36% and a return on equity of 16.03%. Unum Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.43 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of Unum Group 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,922,409.95. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,450 shares in the company, valued at $2,772,500. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,076,753 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,922,409.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 81,000 shares of company stock valued at $4,018,100. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Unum Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $426,463,000. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Unum Group by 401.2% in the 2nd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,639,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $78,196,000 after buying an additional 1,312,286 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Unum Group by 63.6% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,504,307 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $102,752,000 after buying an additional 973,311 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Unum Group during the 1st quarter worth $34,014,000. Finally, BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Unum Group by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 23,681,485 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $746,204,000 after acquiring an additional 836,407 shares during the period. 86.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNM has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.50.

View Our Latest Analysis on UNM

About Unum Group

(Get Free Report)

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.

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