Universal Corporation $UVV Shares Sold by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank lessened its stake in Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV) by 0.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 47,900 shares of the company’s stock after selling 300 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned 0.19% of Universal worth $2,685,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UVV. TrueMark Investments LLC lifted its stake in Universal by 227.0% in the first quarter. TrueMark Investments LLC now owns 97,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,449,000 after acquiring an additional 67,481 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Universal by 7,668.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 64,401 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,610,000 after purchasing an additional 63,572 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Universal by 222.6% during the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 90,141 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,052,000 after purchasing an additional 62,198 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Universal by 15.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 285,785 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,672,000 after purchasing an additional 38,914 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Universal during the fourth quarter worth $1,622,000. 81.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Lennart R. Freeman sold 2,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.89, for a total value of $148,092.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 19,669 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,040,293.41. This trade represents a 12.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert C. Sledd sold 4,617 shares of Universal stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.25, for a total value of $245,855.25. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 15,698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $835,918.50. This represents a 22.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Universal Price Performance

UVV stock opened at $56.6240 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $56.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $55.91. The company has a market capitalization of $1.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.78, a PEG ratio of 6.27 and a beta of 0.74. Universal Corporation has a twelve month low of $49.40 and a twelve month high of $67.33. The company has a current ratio of 2.49, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter. Universal had a return on equity of 8.46% and a net margin of 3.51%.The firm had revenue of $593.76 million during the quarter.

Universal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, October 13th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.8%. Universal’s payout ratio is 79.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research raised Universal to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Universal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

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.