Grandfield & Dodd LLC Decreases Stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Grandfield & Dodd LLC decreased its stake in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 425,693 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,422 shares during the period. Unilever comprises about 1.6% of Grandfield & Dodd LLC's holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position. Grandfield & Dodd LLC's holdings in Unilever were worth $27,653,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of UL. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Unilever by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 7,663 shares of the company's stock worth $498,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Unilever in the 3rd quarter worth $11,133,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in Unilever by 981.6% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,076,169 shares of the company's stock valued at $134,868,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884,216 shares during the last quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC raised its stake in shares of Unilever by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 393,287 shares of the company's stock worth $25,548,000 after buying an additional 24,598 shares during the period. Finally, Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Unilever during the third quarter worth approximately $159,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.67% of the company's stock.

Unilever Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of Unilever stock traded down $0.30 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $57.57. 2,853,882 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,590,980. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $62.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.53. Unilever PLC has a 1 year low of $46.46 and a 1 year high of $65.87.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.4755 dividend. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.30%. This is a boost from Unilever's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of Unilever from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $72.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Unilever in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a "buy" rating and a $67.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group raised Unilever to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Unilever in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Unilever from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unilever has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $61.75.

Unilever Profile

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.