Investors Purchase Large Volume of Unilever Call Options (NYSE:UL)

Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Investors acquired 4,544 call options on the company. This is an increase of 299% compared to the average daily volume of 1,138 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Institutional Trading of Unilever

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

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Unilever Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UL traded down $2.39 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $60.16. 5,916,359 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,568,832. Unilever has a 12 month low of $46.46 and a 12 month high of $65.87. The company has a market capitalization of $149.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.08.

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 3.11%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Unilever's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.