GoalVest Advisory LLC Raises Stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

GoalVest Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 7.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,255 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,336 shares during the quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $966,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of UL. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter worth about $151,263,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Unilever by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 34,494,131 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,672,275,000 after acquiring an additional 1,114,417 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 965,173 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in Unilever by 121.3% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,352,472 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,568,000 after purchasing an additional 741,363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morningstar Investment Services LLC lifted its holdings in Unilever by 97.9% during the 4th quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 1,212,262 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,770,000 after buying an additional 599,759 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unilever Trading Down 0.3 %

UL stock traded down $0.18 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $56.12. 1,621,277 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,801,244. Unilever PLC has a 1-year low of $46.16 and a 1-year high of $56.47. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $50.53.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th were issued a dividend of $0.4556 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Unilever from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Redburn Atlantic raised Unilever from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 7th. StockNews.com raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Argus lifted their price objective on Unilever from $58.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered Unilever from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $52.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $54.00.

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.