Fiduciary Group LLC Lowers Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Fiduciary Group LLC decreased its position in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 38.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,181 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,871 shares during the period. Fiduciary Group LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $300,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in Unilever by 111.5% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 552 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 291 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new stake in shares of Unilever in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Unilever by 215.1% in the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 586 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. grew its stake in shares of Unilever by 51.5% in the 3rd quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 606 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Advisers Inc. bought a new position in Unilever during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 9.67% of the company’s stock.

Unilever Trading Up 0.5 %

UL stock opened at $51.50 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.59. Unilever PLC has a 12-month low of $46.16 and a 12-month high of $55.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $129.02 billion, a PE ratio of 16.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.45.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.4556 per share. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. Unilever’s payout ratio is currently 57.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley downgraded Unilever from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $52.00 to $48.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. StockNews.com cut shares of Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unilever has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.00.

About Unilever

Unilever PLC operates as a fast-moving consumer goods company in the Asia Pacific, Africa, the Americas, and Europe. It operates through five segments: Beauty & Wellbeing, Personal Care, Home Care, Nutrition, and Ice Cream. The Beauty & Wellbeing segment engages in the sale of hair care products, such as shampoo, conditioner, and styling; skin care products including face, hand, and body moisturizer; and prestige beauty and health & wellbeing products consist of the vitamins, minerals, and supplements.