Piper Sandler Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) Stock

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) had its price target lifted by stock analysts at Piper Sandler from $88.00 to $92.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Piper Sandler’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 12.13% from the company’s current price.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on UNM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Unum Group from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Raymond James Financial upgraded Unum Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $108.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Unum Group from $103.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays boosted their price target on Unum Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Unum Group from $76.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.86.

Unum Group Trading Up 1.0%

UNM stock opened at $82.05 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $14.31 billion, a PE ratio of 9.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.41. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $80.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $77.60. Unum Group has a fifty-two week low of $49.63 and a fifty-two week high of $84.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by ($0.15). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 12.31%. The company had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.12 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Unum Group will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Elizabeth Claire Ahmed sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $800,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 51,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,093,600. This represents a 16.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Unum Group

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Voya Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Unum Group by 13.8% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 293,687 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $23,924,000 after buying an additional 35,651 shares in the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank purchased a new stake in Unum Group in the 1st quarter valued at $1,145,000. Modern Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Unum Group in the 1st quarter valued at $203,000. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in Unum Group in the 1st quarter valued at $3,221,000. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Unum Group by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 6,308 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $514,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. 86.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unum Group Company Profile

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.