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L vs. UNM: Loews vs. Unum Stock Comparison

How do Loews (L) and Unum (UNM) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Loews (L) and Unum (UNM) both belong to the Insurance industry, though L is classified under Property & Casualty Insurance while UNM falls under Life & Health Insurance.

Company profile comparison for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM)
Profile ItemLUNM
NameLoews Corp.Unum Group
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
GICS SectorFinancialsFinancials
GICS Industry GroupInsuranceInsurance
GICS IndustryInsuranceInsurance
GICS Sub-IndustryProperty & Casualty InsuranceLife & Health Insurance
Market Capitalization22.19 billion USD11.89 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENYSE
Listing DateMarch 17, 1980November 6, 1986
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

L
UNM
GSPC
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Loews (L) vs. Unum (UNM), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM)
MetricLUNM
Total Return (1Y)7.24%4.52%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)19.27%25.65%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)14.13%29.12%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

L
UNM
GSPC
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Loews (L) vs. Unum (UNM), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM)
MetricLUNM
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)16.13%29.31%
Beta (5Y)0.490.28
Max Drawdown (5Y)-26.11%-23.00%
Avg. Volume (3M)805.54K1.86M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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L and UNM are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM)
MetricLUNM
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)0.180.01
Sortino Ratio (1Y)0.260.01

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Loews (L) at 8.21% and Unum (UNM) at 2.25% produce bottom-quartile ROE versus peers, pointing to weaker profit generation on shareholders’ equity.

L

Insurance industry group

8.21%

Max
41.68%
Q3
22.04%
Median
14.81%
Q1
8.79%
L
8.21%
Min
-10.66%

UNM

Insurance industry group

2.25%

Max
41.68%
Q3
22.04%
Median
14.81%
Q1
8.79%
UNM
2.25%
Min
-10.66%
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Loews (L) vs. Unum (UNM): A comparison of their ROE against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Loews (L) at 7.93% keeps about the industry-typical share of revenue as profit, while Unum (UNM) at 1.94% retains only a bottom-quartile share.

L

Insurance industry group

7.93%

Max
29.92%
Q3
17.03%
Median
10.97%
L
7.93%
Q1
6.21%
Min
-4.68%

UNM

Insurance industry group

1.94%

Max
29.92%
Q3
17.03%
Median
10.97%
Q1
6.21%
UNM
1.94%
Min
-4.68%
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Loews (L) vs. Unum (UNM): A comparison of their net margin against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Neither side reports a meaningful operating margin: for Loews (L) in Insurance and Unum (UNM) in Insurance, funding costs are part of the core business, so net margin and ROE are the cleaner profitability reads.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM)
MetricLUNM
ROE (TTM)8.21%2.25%
ROA (TTM)1.71%0.51%
Net Margin (TTM)7.93%1.94%
Operating Margin (TTM)----
Gross Margin (TTM)----

Growth

Revenue Growth

Loews (L) at 5.44% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while Unum (UNM) at 1.52% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

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Loews (L) vs. Unum (UNM): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Loews (L) at 24.34% is around its peer norm for EPS growth, while Unum (UNM) at -54.86% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker earnings momentum.

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Loews (L) vs. Unum (UNM): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM)
MetricLUNM
Revenue Growth (YoY)5.44%1.52%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)8.96%3.02%
EPS Growth (YoY)24.34%-54.86%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)33.10%-13.07%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

current ratio doesn’t apply on either side: Loews (L) in Insurance and Unum (UNM) in Insurance both report balance sheets without a current/non-current split, so their short-term liquidity is better judged through regulatory and funding measures.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

debt-to-equity ratio is set aside for both: Loews (L) in Insurance and Unum (UNM) in Insurance run businesses where balance-sheet leverage is part of the model, so capital-adequacy and funding measures are the better gauges of balance-sheet risk.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM)
MetricLUNM
Current Ratio (MRQ)----
Debt / Equity (MRQ)----
Net Debt / EBITDA----

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Unum (UNM) at 2.61% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while Loews (L) at 0.23% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, UNM the richer one.

L

Insurance industry group

0.23%

Max
5.12%
Q3
2.15%
Median
0.98%
L
0.23%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

UNM

Insurance industry group

2.61%

Max
5.12%
UNM
2.61%
Q3
2.15%
Median
0.98%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Loews (L) vs. Unum (UNM): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Unum (UNM) reports payout ratio above 100% at 128.23%, meaning dividends exceeded current-period earnings and sustainability needs extra context. Meanwhile Loews (L) reports 3.46%, ranking against industry peers normally.

L

Insurance industry group

3.46%

Max
76.67%
Q3
35.18%
Median
14.74%
L
3.46%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

UNM

Insurance industry group

128.23%

UNM
128.23%
Max
76.67%
Q3
35.18%
Median
14.74%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Loews (L) vs. Unum (UNM): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM)
MetricLUNM
Dividend Yield (TTM)0.23%2.61%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)3.46%128.23%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Loews (L) at 15.17 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Unum (UNM) at 52.21 sits above its peer range — an unusually expensive price for UNM’s trailing earnings.

L

Insurance industry group

15.17

Max
28.37
Q3
18.75
L
15.17
Median
12.23
Q1
9.08
Min
2.32

UNM

Insurance industry group

52.21

UNM
52.21
Max
28.37
Q3
18.75
Median
12.23
Q1
9.08
Min
2.32
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Loews (L) vs. Unum (UNM): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Loews (L) at 1.18 and Unum (UNM) at 0.95 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

L

Insurance industry group

1.18

Max
4.03
Q3
2.25
Median
1.23
L
1.18
Q1
0.85
Min
0.07

UNM

Insurance industry group

0.95

Max
4.03
Q3
2.25
Median
1.23
UNM
0.95
Q1
0.85
Min
0.07
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Loews (L) vs. Unum (UNM): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Relative to net asset value, both Loews (L) at 1.22 and Unum (UNM) at 1.11 look inexpensive, sitting in the lower P/B ratio quartile of their industries.

L

Insurance industry group

1.22

Max
5.07
Q3
2.79
Median
1.76
Q1
1.23
L
1.22
Min
0.30

UNM

Insurance industry group

1.11

Max
5.07
Q3
2.79
Median
1.76
Q1
1.23
UNM
1.11
Min
0.30
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Loews (L) vs. Unum (UNM): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Loews (L) and Unum (UNM)
MetricLUNM
P/E Ratio (TTM)15.1752.21
P/S Ratio (TTM)1.180.95
P/B Ratio (MRQ)1.221.11
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)----