Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Increases Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 187.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 55,190 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 35,986 shares during the quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in Unilever were worth $3,129,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UL. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Unilever during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought 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 fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Unilever during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Unilever from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded Unilever from a "sector perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Unilever has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $66.33.

Unilever Stock Performance

Unilever stock traded down $0.53 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $63.69. 2,374,644 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,600,931. The company has a market cap of $157.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.25, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.42. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $59.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.86. Unilever PLC has a 52-week low of $50.28 and a 52-week high of $65.87.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.4674 per share. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Unilever's payout ratio is 53.01%.

Unilever Company 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.