Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Buys New Shares in Unum Group $UNM

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 231,586 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $16,913,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 0.14% of Unum Group as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UNM. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Unum Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,108,919,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 4.0% during 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 purchasing an additional 223,095 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Unum Group by 0.5% in 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 last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Unum Group by 0.4% in 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 last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Unum Group by 35.1% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,339,289 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $181,622,000 after buying an additional 607,684 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Unum Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “moderate buy” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of Unum Group in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Unum Group from $88.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Unum Group from $81.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $93.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.14, for a total value of $961,680.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,412,922.18. This represents a 21.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Stock Up 1.1%

UNM stock opened at $89.86 on Friday. Unum Group has a one year low of $68.28 and a one year high of $93.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.35. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $84.15 and its 200 day moving average is $78.45. The firm has a market cap of $14.36 billion, a PE ratio of 19.53, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.24.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.07. Unum Group had a net margin of 5.86% and a return on equity of 12.60%. The business had revenue of $3.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.04 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Unum Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.600-8.90 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.77 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, April 24th were paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 24th. Unum Group’s payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

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.