Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 646,436 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,681 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Unilever were worth $41,992,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Saturna Capital Corp grew its stake in shares of Unilever by 0.5% during the third quarter. Saturna Capital Corp now owns 574,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,308,000 after purchasing an additional 3,086 shares in the last quarter. Haverford Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of Unilever by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 75,509 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,905,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Unilever by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,299 shares of the company’s stock worth $409,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Unilever by 3.7% during the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 9,847 shares of the company’s stock worth $640,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keystone Financial Services increased its stake in Unilever by 7.7% in the third quarter. Keystone Financial Services now owns 11,522 shares of the company’s stock valued at $748,000 after purchasing an additional 826 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on UL. UBS Group raised Unilever to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Unilever in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price target for the company. Bank of America upgraded shares of Unilever from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unilever has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $61.75.

Unilever Stock Performance

Shares of UL traded down $0.40 on Wednesday, hitting $57.17. 183,411 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,585,598. Unilever PLC has a 1 year low of $46.46 and a 1 year high of $65.87. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $63.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $59.33.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a $0.4755 dividend. This is a positive change from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th.

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.