Unum Poised For Gains CEO Says

May 23--Despite the softening economy and sagging consumer sentiment, Unum Group's chief executive painted an upbeat picture for the insurer at its annual shareholder meeting in Chattanooga.

"There are a lot of storm clouds out there," said Unum CEO Thomas R. Watjen. "But the company is differently positioned today than in the last downturn."

Mr. Watjen told a comparatively small gathering of fewer than 75 shareholders that the company has hit key priorities over the last three years.

Operating income is up 53 percent to $786.2 million in the three-year period, he said. The capital position of Chattanooga-based Unum has risen from $271 million in 2005 to about $1 billion now, the CEO said.

"Despite headwinds, we're confident we can power through these in a positive way," Mr. Watjen said about Chattanooga's largest publicly traded company which employs almost 3,000 people here and 10,000 worldwide.

Jon Fossil, Unum's chairman, said its share price has risen in the past four years by 74.5 percent, compared to the S&P 500's gain of 36.2 percent. Unum's stock price closed Thursday at $24.36 a share, up 57 cents, or 2.4 percent.

The company's chairman cited a recent research report by Citigroup analyst Colin Devine, who Mr. Fossil said "used to be not our friend. He was down on the company, critical, and not without some good reason."

But, Mr. Fossil said Mr. Devine wrote that Unum's turnaround is complete, its multistate claims reassessment is finished, and it has restructured some of its business, paving the way for a positive upgrades by rating agencies.

Mr. Fossil said there will be bumps ahead, but the insurer is on sound footing to deal with those.

Looking ahead, Mr. Watjen told shareholders the company wants to consistently execute its business plan to achieve disciplined profitable growth. In addition, he said, Unum is focusing on better leveraging its leadership position in its products such as disability and long-term care insurance.

Mr. Watjen expects Chattanooga's employee head count, and that of the company, to remain stable.

"We're learning to do things more efficiently over time," he said.