Avalon Trust Co Cuts Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Avalon Trust Co reduced its holdings in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 15.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,750 shares of the company’s stock after selling 700 shares during the quarter. Avalon Trust Co’s holdings in Unilever were worth $182,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in Unilever by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 10,843,977 shares of the company’s stock valued at $525,716,000 after acquiring an additional 965,173 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Unilever by 6.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,548,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $422,293,000 after acquiring an additional 515,088 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Unilever by 35.3% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,748,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $234,556,000 after purchasing an additional 1,238,734 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Unilever by 1.8% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,819,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,664,000 after acquiring an additional 67,190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Manning & Napier Group LLC grew its holdings in Unilever by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Manning & Napier Group LLC now owns 3,332,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $161,582,000 after acquiring an additional 47,256 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 9.67% of the company’s stock.

Unilever Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of Unilever stock traded up $0.11 on Friday, reaching $52.13. 4,413,133 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,468,891. Unilever PLC has a fifty-two week low of $46.16 and a fifty-two week high of $55.69. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $49.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.69.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $0.4556 dividend. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on UL shares. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Unilever from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $52.00 to $48.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. StockNews.com raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.00.

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.