Banco Santander S.A. Lowers Stock Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Banco Santander S.A. trimmed its stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,810 shares of the company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in Unilever were worth $500,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UL. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Unilever by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 467,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,507,000 after acquiring an additional 9,718 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Unilever by 118.0% in the fourth quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $938,000 after purchasing an additional 8,949 shares during the period. Haven Private LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unilever in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $450,000. Destination Wealth Management increased its stake in Unilever by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Destination Wealth Management now owns 134,650 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,635,000 after buying an additional 1,895 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Unilever by 113.9% during the 4th quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 21,067 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,194,000 after buying an additional 11,220 shares in the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Unilever Stock Up 1.8 %

UL stock opened at $60.29 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $56.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.80. The stock has a market cap of $149.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.28, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.47. Unilever PLC has a fifty-two week low of $46.46 and a fifty-two week high of $65.87.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.4674 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on UL shares. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.33.

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.