Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Increases Stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) by 154.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 50,915 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 30,908 shares during the quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Unum Group were worth $2,302,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $426,463,000. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of Unum Group by 401.2% in the second quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,639,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $78,196,000 after purchasing an additional 1,312,286 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Unum Group by 63.6% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its position in Unum Group by 583.3% during the third quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,025,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,420,000 after buying an additional 875,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Unum Group by 79.8% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,952,763 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $88,616,000 after buying an additional 866,531 shares during the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Unum Group

In related news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,450 shares in the company, valued at $2,772,500. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 5,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,450 shares in the company, valued at $2,772,500. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 16,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $800,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 40,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,042,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 81,000 shares of company stock valued at $4,018,100. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Unum Group Stock Performance

NYSE:UNM opened at $50.79 on Friday. Unum Group has a fifty-two week low of $40.04 and a fifty-two week high of $54.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $50.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.83, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.87.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.86 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.14 billion. Unum Group had a return on equity of 16.03% and a net margin of 10.36%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.43 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Unum Group will post 8.19 EPS for the current year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.365 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.87%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Unum Group from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Unum Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Unum Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Unum Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Unum Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.38.

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.