National Bank of Canada FI Trims Stock Holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

National Bank of Canada FI reduced its stake in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 13.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 382,226 shares of the company’s stock after selling 58,521 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI’s holdings in Unilever were worth $24,818,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UL. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Unilever by 393.5% in the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 533 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Unilever in the second quarter worth about $30,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Unilever by 202.5% during the 3rd quarter. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 605 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 405 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Unilever in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Unilever Price Performance

UL opened at $58.87 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $60.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $60.06. Unilever PLC has a 1-year low of $46.46 and a 1-year high of $65.87.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 is a positive change from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on UL shares. Bank of America raised shares of Unilever from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $72.00 in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average 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.