NEW YORK – UnumProvident Corp. stock rose Wednesday in the wake of the insurance company’s second-quarter results, which beat Wall Street expectations.

Shares of UnumProvident closed up 8.2 percent, or $1.04, at $13.75, on the New York Stock Exchange.

“Following a significant disappointment last quarter, UnumProvident’s results in the second quarter showed signs of progress,” Morgan Stanley analyst Nigel Dally wrote in a research note.

Late Tuesday, UnumProvident posted a second quarter operating profit of 42 cents a share – 2 cents better than Wall Street’s expectations.

On a net income basis, the company earned $98.5 million, up from $97.7 million a year ago. But partly because about 30 million more shares were outstanding in the latest quarter, per-share net income fell to 36 cents from 40 cents.

Most pleasing to Wall Street was the company’s ability to bounce back from last March, when credit rating downgrades and negative publicity over claims practices sent UnumProvident’s stock spiraling to a 52-week low of $5.91.