Voya Financial Advisors Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Voya Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 30.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,891 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,223 shares during the period. Voya Financial Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Unilever were worth $1,526,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $176,806,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $153,606,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Unilever by 140.1% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,719,284 shares of the company's stock valued at $210,883,000 after acquiring an additional 2,170,242 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in shares of Unilever by 66.4% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,454,686 shares of the company's stock valued at $195,881,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378,517 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Unilever by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 17,940,963 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,017,253,000 after acquiring an additional 1,214,563 shares during the period. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Unilever Price Performance

NYSE:UL traded up $0.55 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $63.17. The stock had a trading volume of 1,938,932 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,573,789. The firm has a market capitalization of $155.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.42. Unilever PLC has a one year low of $51.34 and a one year high of $65.87. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $59.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.80.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.5151 per share. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.26%. This is a boost from Unilever's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Unilever's payout ratio is presently 59.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. DZ Bank raised shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Unilever from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Unilever from a "sector perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to 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.