TIAA Trust National Association Cuts Holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

TIAA Trust National Association reduced its holdings in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,714 shares of the company’s stock after selling 356 shares during the quarter. TIAA Trust National Association’s holdings in Unilever were worth $607,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of UL. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Unilever by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 17,940,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,017,253,000 after acquiring an additional 1,214,563 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unilever by 66.4% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,454,686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $195,881,000 after purchasing an additional 1,378,517 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Unilever during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $176,806,000. Hamlin Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Unilever by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC now owns 2,874,929 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,008,000 after purchasing an additional 207,549 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Unilever by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,847,686 shares of the company’s stock worth $161,464,000 after purchasing an additional 131,349 shares during the period. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on UL shares. StockNews.com raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. DZ Bank raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.33.

Unilever Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:UL opened at $58.68 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $57.54 and a 200 day moving average of $59.33. The company has a market cap of $145.35 billion, a PE ratio of 16.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.47. Unilever PLC has a 12-month low of $46.46 and a 12-month high of $65.87.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.4674 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.87 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.01%.

Unilever Profile

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.