Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC reduced its position in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 433,007 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,060 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $24,552,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Unilever by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 25,351 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,647,000 after buying an additional 1,713 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Unilever by 14.2% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 42,405 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,755,000 after acquiring an additional 5,263 shares during the last quarter. Coastline Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Unilever in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Unilever by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 18,668 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,213,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the period. Finally, Claro Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Unilever by 27.9% during the 3rd quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 9,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $596,000 after purchasing an additional 2,005 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on UL shares. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. StockNews.com raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, DZ Bank raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.33.

Unilever Stock Performance

Unilever stock opened at $58.74 on Monday. Unilever PLC has a fifty-two week low of $46.46 and a fifty-two week high of $65.87. The company has a market capitalization of $145.75 billion, a PE ratio of 16.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $56.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.66.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.4674 dividend. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio is 53.01%.

Unilever Company 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.