Boston Common Asset Management LLC Cuts Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Boston Common Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 20.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 262,282 shares of the company’s stock after selling 68,574 shares during the period. Boston Common Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $14,871,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Unilever by 16.9% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 110,528 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,180,000 after buying an additional 15,941 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unilever during the 3rd quarter worth $11,694,000. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in Unilever by 249.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,748,329 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,204,000 after acquiring an additional 1,248,136 shares during the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Unilever by 236.2% in the 3rd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 30,520 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,997,000 after acquiring an additional 21,441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Radnor Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Unilever during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,388,000. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Royal Bank of Canada cut Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.75.

Unilever Trading Up 1.4 %

NYSE UL traded up $0.76 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $56.20. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 306,035 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,040,789. Unilever PLC has a 52-week low of $46.46 and a 52-week high of $65.87. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $57.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $60.31.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.4755 dividend. This is an increase from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th.

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.