Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Has $915,000 Stock Holdings in Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund cut its stake in shares of Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV) by 3.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,593 shares of the company’s stock after selling 421 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Universal were worth $915,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sound Income Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Universal in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Gladius Capital Management LP increased its position in Universal by 57.5% in the 3rd quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 712 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its position in Universal by 71.9% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 655 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Universal by 81.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 725 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in Universal by 356.2% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,103 shares of the company’s stock worth $142,000 after purchasing an additional 1,642 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 lowered Universal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 10th.

Universal Stock Performance

UVV opened at $50.80 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $1.25 billion, a PE ratio of 9.57 and a beta of 0.79. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $50.07 and a 200-day moving average of $54.02. Universal Co. has a 52-week low of $44.40 and a 52-week high of $67.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 3.22.

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

Universal Dividend Announcement

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. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.30%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 5th. Universal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.