Caprock Group LLC Sells 2,909 Shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Caprock Group LLC reduced its stake in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 39,447 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,909 shares during the quarter. Caprock Group LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $2,169,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Unilever by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 34,494,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,672,275,000 after buying an additional 1,114,417 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in Unilever by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 10,830,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $525,051,000 after purchasing an additional 951,446 shares during the period. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Unilever by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 6,548,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $317,459,000 after purchasing an additional 329,705 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Unilever by 19.3% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 4,132,640 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,416,000 after purchasing an additional 668,913 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Unilever in the 4th quarter valued at $151,263,000. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on UL shares. UBS Group raised shares of Unilever to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. StockNews.com raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 3rd. Redburn Atlantic raised Unilever from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Unilever from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen initiated coverage on Unilever in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price target on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.75.

Unilever Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:UL opened at $65.25 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $60.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $54.72. Unilever PLC has a 1-year low of $46.16 and a 1-year high of $65.72.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a $0.4773 dividend. This is an increase from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $1.91 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%.

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.