Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Has $1.62 Million Holdings in Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV)

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV) by 7.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 24,017 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Universal were worth $1,617,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of UVV. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Universal by 4.0% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 597,475 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,696,000 after purchasing an additional 23,204 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. raised its position in Universal by 4.5% in the first quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 22,805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,324,000 after purchasing an additional 974 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in Universal by 18.5% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,475 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in Universal by 10.3% in the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 7,553 shares of the company’s stock valued at $431,000 after purchasing an additional 703 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in Universal by 52.0% in the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 13,851 shares of the company’s stock valued at $804,000 after purchasing an additional 4,737 shares during the last quarter. 81.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Universal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 10th.

Universal Price Performance

Shares of UVV opened at $48.55 on Monday. Universal Co. has a 1 year low of $44.40 and a 1 year high of $67.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The company has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.14 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a 50-day moving average of $50.59 and a 200-day moving average of $53.76.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Universal had a return on equity of 7.46% and a net margin of 4.98%. The company had revenue of $821.51 million during the quarter.

Universal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 8th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 5th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.59%. Universal’s payout ratio is currently 60.26%.

Universal Profile

Universal Corporation processes and supplies leaf tobacco and plant-based ingredients worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Tobacco Operations; and Ingredients Operations. It is involved in the procuring, financing, processing, packing, storing, and shipping leaf tobacco for sale to manufacturers of consumer tobacco products.