Invesco Ltd. Sells 10,485 Shares of Unilever PLC $UL

Invesco Ltd. cut its stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 23.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,560 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,485 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd.’s holdings in Unilever were worth $1,998,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its stake in shares of Unilever by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 25,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,504,000 after buying an additional 1,766 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in shares of Unilever in the first quarter valued at about $3,944,000. Citigroup Inc. increased its position in Unilever by 10.7% during the first quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 199,393 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,874,000 after buying an additional 19,200 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in shares of Unilever by 1.9% during the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 48,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,903,000 after acquiring an additional 899 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Unilever by 16.7% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 196,202 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,684,000 after buying an additional 28,109 shares during the period. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on UL. Wall Street Zen cut Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of Unilever in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Unilever to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Jefferies Financial Group restated an “underperform” rating on shares of Unilever in a research report on Sunday, August 3rd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on shares of Unilever in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $73.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.00.

Unilever Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE:UL opened at $63.25 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $61.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $60.87. Unilever PLC has a twelve month low of $54.32 and a twelve month high of $65.87. The company has a market cap of $155.18 billion, a PE ratio of 18.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.38.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.5175 dividend. This is an increase from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.07 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Unilever’s payout ratio is currently 59.31%.

About Unilever

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.