Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Price Target Raised to $91.00

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) had its target price boosted by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $81.00 to $91.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 23.01% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on UNM. Evercore ISI raised Unum Group from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $67.00 to $84.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Unum Group from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Unum Group in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $91.00 price target on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on Unum Group from $76.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.17.

Unum Group Price Performance

Shares of Unum Group stock opened at $73.98 on Wednesday. Unum Group has a one year low of $48.38 and a one year high of $79.43. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $74.19 and its 200 day moving average is $66.35. The stock has a market cap of $13.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.29.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by ($0.11). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 9.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Unum Group declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.92, for a total value of $769,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 54,827 shares in the company, 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 SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 58,865 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.39, for a total value of $4,437,832.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,007,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $75,917,956.17. This represents a 5.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 78,865 shares of company stock worth $5,952,032. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of UNM. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,003,918,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Unum Group by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,497,586 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,496,939,000 after buying an additional 1,596,078 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $113,962,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $105,199,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Unum Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,096,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

About Unum Group

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.