Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Reiterates “Moderate Buy” Rating for Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)‘s stock had its “moderate buy” rating reiterated by equities researchers at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods in a report released on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. They presently have a $95.00 target price on the financial services provider’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ target price indicates a potential upside of 30.37% from the company’s current price.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Unum Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Unum Group from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Unum Group in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Zacks Research lowered Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Friday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.40.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNM opened at $72.87 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $11.93 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.20. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $73.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $75.66. Unum Group has a 1-year low of $66.81 and a 1-year high of $83.21.

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

Unum Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, December 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Unum Group news, EVP Christopher W. Pyne sold 4,852 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.47, for a total transaction of $351,624.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 52,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,787,861.96. The trade was a 8.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Cynthia Egan sold 9,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.00, for a total value of $657,000.00. Following the sale, the director 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 21,852 shares of company stock worth $1,590,734 over the last quarter. 0.92% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Unum Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the 4th quarter valued at $1,108,919,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Unum Group by 4.0% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 5,734,937 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $446,063,000 after buying an additional 223,095 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Unum Group by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,653,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $438,127,000 after buying an additional 26,753 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Unum Group by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,791,712 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $293,868,000 after buying an additional 13,832 shares during the period. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its position in Unum Group by 63.7% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 2,516,126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $195,704,000 after buying an additional 978,937 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Unum Group

Here are the key news stories impacting Unum Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “moderate buy” on UNM and maintained a $95 price target (implies ~30% upside versus current levels), supporting a longer‑term constructive view. KBW reaffirmation
• Positive Sentiment: Consensus analyst positioning: several outlets report a consensus “moderate buy” thread among analysts, which can provide support versus more bearish lone ratings. Consensus recommendation
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its FY2028 EPS view modestly (to $10.72 from $10.58) — a longer‑horizon improvement but unlikely to offset near‑term concerns by itself. Zacks FY2028 note
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research cut multiple near‑term quarterly and annual EPS estimates and reiterated a “Strong Sell” rating: Q1 2026 to $2.08 (from $2.11), Q2 2026 to $2.18 (from $2.21), Q3 2026 to $2.23 (from $2.25), Q4 2026 to $2.28 (from $2.31/2.34 reported in notes), FY2026 to $8.76 (from $8.88), and FY2027 to $9.72 (from $9.84). Those downgrades increase near‑term earnings risk and are the primary reason for downward stock pressure. Zacks cuts

Unum Group Company Profile

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.