Yahoo Finance Unum (UNM) Soars 8.8%: Is Further Upside Left in the Stock?
Unum (UNM) shares rallied 8.8% in the last trading session to close at $39.85. This move can be attributable to notable volume with a higher number of shares being traded than in a typical session. This compares to the stock's 14.3% loss over the past four weeks.
Disciplined sales trends, strong persistency, an improving rate environment, favorable risk experience and a solid capital position continue to drive Unum’s shares.
This leading disability income writer and the second-largest writer of voluntary business in the United States targets premium from core business to increase 4-6% over the long term. Solid operational performance, favorable benefits experience as well as solid top-line growth in the core businesses should continue to fuel growth and help UNM achieve its targeted growth.
Management remains focused on moving on to a mix of businesses with higher growth and stable margins. Its sustained solid operating results have been fueling a solid level of statutory earnings and capital, cushioning financial flexibility. This in turn helps UNM engage in effective capital deployment to enhance shareholders value.
This insurance company is expected to post quarterly earnings of $1.61 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +18.4%. Revenues are expected to be $3.06 billion, up 2.1% from the year-ago quarter.
Earnings and revenue growth expectations certainly give a good sense of the potential strength in a stock, but empirical research shows that trends in earnings estimate revisions are strongly correlated with near-term stock price movements.
For Unum, the consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 3.2% higher over the last 30 days to the current level. And a positive trend in earnings estimate revision usually translates into price appreciation. So, make sure to keep an eye on UNM going forward to see if this recent jump can turn into more strength down the road.
The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>
Unum is part of the Zacks Insurance - Accident and Health industry. Trupanion (TRUP), another stock in the same industry, closed the last trading session 4.3% higher at $52.43. TRUP has returned -14.9% in the past month.
For Trupanion , the consensus EPS estimate for the upcoming report has changed -3.4% over the past month to -$0.27. This represents a change of -800% from what the company reported a year ago. Trupanion currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
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Unum Group (UNM) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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