HighTower Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Unilever PLC $UL

HighTower Advisors LLC decreased its position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 7.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 411,199 shares of the company’s stock after selling 31,179 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $26,892,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Unilever by 9.3% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 34,665,544 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,054,973,000 after purchasing an additional 2,935,227 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Unilever by 4.4% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 22,537,917 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,336,048,000 after purchasing an additional 959,269 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in Unilever by 1.6% in the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,773,638 shares of the company’s stock valued at $342,261,000 after purchasing an additional 91,049 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Unilever by 3.5% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,001,060 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,183,000 after purchasing an additional 133,776 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Unilever by 0.5% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 3,293,210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $195,221,000 after purchasing an additional 17,763 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.67% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on UL. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Monday. Argus upgraded Unilever to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings downgraded Unilever from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded Unilever from an “underperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $65.55.

Unilever Stock Performance

NYSE:UL opened at $57.33 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $58.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $64.52. Unilever PLC has a 1 year low of $54.95 and a 1 year high of $74.97.

Unilever Profile

Unilever PLC is a global consumer goods company with roots dating back to the early 20th century, formed from the merger of the British firm Lever Brothers and the Dutch company Margarine Unie. The company develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of branded products in personal care, home care and foods and refreshments. Unilever’s corporate structure and listings reflect its long history in both the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, and it operates at scale across diverse consumer markets worldwide.

Unilever’s business is organized around major product categories—Beauty & Personal Care, Home Care and Foods & Refreshment—and includes numerous well-known consumer brands across those categories.