Insurer Unum raises dividend, to boost yield to about double the S&P 500

Shares of Unum Group
UNM,
+1.54%
rose 0.3% in premarket trading, after the insurer raised its quarterly dividend by 10.6%, to 36.5 cents a share from 33.0 cents a share. The new dividend is expected to be paid in the third quarter of 2023. Based on Wednesday’s stock closing price of $44.89, the new annual dividend rate implies a dividend yield of 3.25%, which compares with the yield for the SPDR S&P Insurance exchange-traded fund of 1.95% and the implied yield of the S&P 500
SPX,
+0.88%
of 1.66%. Unum’s stock has advanced 9.4% year to date through Wednesday, while the insurance ETF has lost 5.2% and the S&P 500 has gained 7.2%.