First Hawaiian Bank Grows Stock Holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

First Hawaiian Bank grew its holdings in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,108 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 280 shares during the quarter. First Hawaiian Bank’s holdings in Unilever were worth $516,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of UL. Range Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Unilever by 216.2% during the fourth quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 10,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $579,000 after purchasing an additional 6,984 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Unilever by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 6,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 653 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Unilever by 721.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 994 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 873 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Unilever by 104.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 292,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,983,000 after purchasing an additional 149,111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DGS Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unilever during the third quarter worth $225,000. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unilever Price Performance

UL opened at $55.14 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $136.63 billion, a PE ratio of 16.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.49. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $58.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.29. Unilever PLC has a 12-month low of $46.46 and a 12-month high of $65.87.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders 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 of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.45%. Unilever’s payout ratio is presently 56.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut shares of Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Unilever presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.