Short Interest in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) Decreases By 17.2%

Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Get Free Report) saw a large decrease in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,540,000 shares, a decrease of 17.2% from the March 15th total of 1,860,000 shares. Currently, 0.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 2,890,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.5 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Unilever from a "sector perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut Unilever from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, DZ Bank raised 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 given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $66.33.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Unilever

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Unilever during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Unilever in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Unilever during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in Unilever during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Unilever during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 9.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unilever Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of Unilever stock traded down $1.21 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $64.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,486,455 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,603,765. The firm has a market capitalization of $158.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.40, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.42. Unilever has a 1-year low of $47.80 and a 1-year high of $65.87. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $58.81.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.4674 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.91%. Unilever's dividend 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.