Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 24,810 Shares of Unum Group $UNM

Victory Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 1.1% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,176,450 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 24,810 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $169,284,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $247,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Unum Group by 138.8% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 112,985 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,125,000 after buying an additional 65,670 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors bought a new stake in Unum Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $383,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Unum Group by 1,123.4% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 575 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 528 shares during the period. Finally, Atria Investments Inc boosted its position in Unum Group by 184.2% during the 2nd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 13,419 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,084,000 after buying an additional 8,697 shares during the period. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Unum Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNM opened at $70.69 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $75.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.58 billion, a PE ratio of 16.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.20. Unum Group has a one year low of $66.81 and a one year high of $84.48.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by ($0.19). Unum Group had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 5.65%.The firm had revenue of $3.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.03 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Unum Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.600-8.900 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 9.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.29%.

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, December 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on UNM. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $85.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Zacks Research downgraded Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Unum Group from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Unum Group from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.64.

Insider Activity at Unum Group

In other news, CAO Walter Lynn Rice, Jr. sold 900 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.50, for a total transaction of $66,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,940 shares in the company, valued at approximately $657,090. This trade represents a 9.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Cynthia Egan sold 9,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.00, for a total value of $657,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 42,846 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,127,758. This represents a 17.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 14,400 shares of company stock valued at $1,049,760 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

About Unum Group

Unum Group (NYSE: UNM) is a leading provider of employee benefits in the United States and selected international markets, specializing in disability, life, accident and critical illness insurance. Through both fully insured and self-funded arrangements, the company offers group coverage designed to protect income and mitigate financial hardship for employees and their families. Its portfolio includes short-term and long-term disability plans, group life and accidental death & dismemberment (AD&D) policies, as well as critical illness and hospital indemnity products.

In addition to its core product lines, Unum Group markets voluntary benefits under its Colonial Life brand, allowing employees to purchase supplemental insurance such as accident, cancer, and dental coverage directly through payroll deductions.