Mariner LLC Purchases 21,321 Shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Mariner LLC increased its stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 387,835 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 21,321 shares during the period. Mariner LLC's holdings in Unilever were worth $21,990,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Unilever by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,250 shares of the company's stock worth $524,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the period. Tyler Stone Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Unilever by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 6,576 shares of the company's stock worth $373,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. boosted its position in Unilever by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 9,956 shares of the company's stock valued at $565,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lifted its position in Unilever by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 5,646 shares of the company's stock valued at $320,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its stake in shares of Unilever by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 2,966 shares of the company's stock valued at $168,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. StockNews.com cut Unilever from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Unilever from a "sector perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unilever presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.33.

Unilever Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of UL stock traded up $1.69 on Tuesday, hitting $65.36. The stock had a trading volume of 908,285 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,865,003. Unilever PLC has a one year low of $47.80 and a one year high of $65.87. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $58.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.76. The company has a market cap of $161.90 billion, a PE ratio of 18.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.42.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.4674 dividend. This represents a $1.87 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Unilever's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.01%.

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.