Claro Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Claro Advisors LLC raised its stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 27.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,180 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,005 shares during the quarter. Claro Advisors LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $596,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Unilever by 26.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,384,944 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,145,000 after buying an additional 911,443 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its position in Unilever by 19.3% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 4,132,640 shares of the company’s stock valued at $207,416,000 after purchasing an additional 668,913 shares during the period. Equity Investment Corp lifted its stake in shares of Unilever by 107.1% in the 1st quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 2,910,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $146,091,000 after purchasing an additional 1,505,233 shares during the last quarter. Saratoga Research & Investment Management grew its holdings in shares of Unilever by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Saratoga Research & Investment Management now owns 2,767,207 shares of the company’s stock worth $152,169,000 after purchasing an additional 22,325 shares during the period. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp increased its position in shares of Unilever by 1,866.0% during the 2nd quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 2,135,859 shares of the company’s stock worth $117,451,000 after purchasing an additional 2,027,221 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unilever Stock Performance

Shares of Unilever stock opened at $62.95 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $57.73. Unilever PLC has a one year low of $46.16 and a one year high of $65.87. The company has a market cap of $157.57 billion, a PE ratio of 18.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.48.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were issued a dividend of $0.4773 per share. This represents a $1.91 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This is a boost from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Unilever’s payout ratio is 54.65%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on UL shares. Bank of America raised shares of Unilever from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $47.00 to $72.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. StockNews.com raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group upgraded Unilever to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, TD Cowen started coverage on Unilever in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Unilever presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.75.

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.