Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 3,219 Shares of Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV) by 2.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 122,919 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,219 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.50% of Universal worth $6,890,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in UVV. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Universal by 828.9% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 771 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 688 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new stake in shares of Universal in the 4th quarter worth $56,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal by 38.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Universal by 68.6% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,052 shares of the company’s stock worth $167,000 after buying an additional 1,242 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas purchased a new stake in Universal in the 1st quarter worth $202,000. 81.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Universal Stock Performance

Universal stock opened at $54.90 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.52 and a beta of 0.73. The company’s 50-day moving average is $58.97 and its 200 day moving average is $55.54. Universal Corporation has a 1-year low of $48.52 and a 1-year high of $67.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.87 and a quick ratio of 1.55.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $702.28 million for the quarter. Universal had a net margin of 3.22% and a return on equity of 7.89%.

Universal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 4th. Investors of record on Monday, July 14th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 14th. This is an increase from Universal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.97%. Universal’s payout ratio is currently 86.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Universal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 31st.

About Universal

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.