Short Interest in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) Drops By 16.6%

Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,510,000 shares, a decline of 16.6% from the December 15th total of 3,010,000 shares. Currently, 0.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 2,120,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.2 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Unilever by 981.6% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,076,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,868,000 after buying an additional 1,884,216 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in Unilever by 249.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,748,329 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,204,000 after acquiring an additional 1,248,136 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its stake in Unilever by 598.7% in the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,301,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,555,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114,992 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Unilever by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 16,726,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,086,547,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114,177 shares during the period. Finally, Citigroup Inc. boosted its holdings in Unilever by 493.4% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 1,105,064 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,785,000 after purchasing an additional 918,841 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 9.67% of the company’s stock.

Unilever Trading Up 1.4 %

UL stock traded up $0.78 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $55.50. 1,801,125 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,219,202. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $57.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $60.31. Unilever has a 52 week low of $46.46 and a 52 week high of $65.87.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.4755 per share. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.43%. This is a positive change from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. StockNews.com lowered Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unilever currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.75.

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.