Scotia Capital Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Scotia Capital Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 12.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 237,916 shares of the company's stock after selling 33,823 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc.'s holdings in Unilever were worth $13,492,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Unilever in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Unilever in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Unilever in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in Unilever in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Unilever during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Unilever Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:UL traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $62.10. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,274,206 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,613,803. The firm has a market cap of $153.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $58.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.79. Unilever PLC has a 1 year low of $46.46 and a 1 year high of $65.87.

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Unilever Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.4674 dividend. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Unilever's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on UL. Royal Bank of Canada cut Unilever from a "sector perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com raised shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $66.33.

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.