Universal (UVV) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Company Overview

Universal Corporation processes and supplies leaf tobacco and plant-based ingredients worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Tobacco Operations; and Ingredients Operations. It is involved in the procuring, financing, processing, packing, storing, and shipping leaf tobacco for sale to manufacturers of consumer tobacco products. The company contracts, purchases, processes, and sells flue-cured, burley, and oriental tobaccos that are primarily used in the manufacture of cigarettes; and dark air-cured tobaccos principally used in the manufacture of cigars, natural wrapped cigars and cigarillos, smokeless, and pipe tobacco products. It also provides value-added services, including blending, chemical, and physical testing of tobacco; service cutting for various manufacturers; manufacturing reconstituted leaf tobacco; just-in-time inventory management services; electronic nicotine delivery systems; and smoke testing services for customers. In addition, the company offers testing services for crop protection agents and tobacco constituents in seed, leaf, and finished products, including e-cigarette liquids and vapors; and analytical services that include chemical compound testing in finished tobacco products and mainstream smoke. Further, it provides a various value-added manufacturing processes to produce specialty vegetable and fruit-based ingredients, as well as botanical extracts and flavorings for human and pet food markets; and recycles waste materials from tobacco production. Universal Corporation was founded in 1886 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia.

Key Stats

• Today's Range: $50.65 to $51.22
• 50-Day Range: $49.84 to $57.98
• 52-Week Range: $45.19 to $60.10
• Volume: 94,267 shs
• Average Volume: 127,975 shs
• Market Capitalization: $1.26 billion
• P/E Ratio: 10.48
• Dividend Yield: 6.36%
• Price Target: N/A
• Consensus Rating: N/A

Universal Stock Analysis - MarketRank™

Universal scored higher than 62% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 90th out of 146 stocks in the consumer staples sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation.

Analyst's Opinion

• Score: N/A
• Analyst Rating: N/A

Consensus Rating

There is not enough analysis data for Universal.

Earnings and Valuation

• Score: 1.9 / 5
• Proj. Earnings Growth: N/A

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the Market

The P/E ratio of Universal is 10.48, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 111.72.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. Sector

The P/E ratio of Universal is 10.48, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the Consumer Staples sector average P/E ratio of about 21.14.

Price to Book Value per Share Ratio

Universal has a P/B Ratio of 0.85. P/B Ratios below 1 indicate that a company could be undervalued with respect to its assets and liabilities.

Short Interest

• Score: 3.0 / 5
• Short Interest Level: Healthy

Percentage of Shares Shorted

2.08% of the float of Universal has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Universal has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 3.5, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Universal has recently increased by 14.40%, indicating that investor sentiment is decreasing significantly.

Dividend

• Score: 4.2 / 5
• Dividend Strength: Strong

Dividend Leadership

Universal is a leading dividend payer. It pays a dividend yield of 6.44%, putting its dividend yield in the top 25% of dividend-paying stocks.

Dividend Growth

Universal has been increasing its dividend for 55 years.

Dividend Coverage

The dividend payout ratio of Universal is 66.67%. This payout ratio is at a healthy, sustainable level, below 75%.

Sustainability and ESG

• Score: 0.0 / 5
• Environmental Score: -1.60

Percentage of Shares Shorted

2.08% of the float of Universal has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Universal has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 3.5, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Universal has recently increased by 14.40%, indicating that investor sentiment is decreasing significantly.

News and Social Media

• Score: 3.2 / 5
• News Sentiment: 0.79

News Sentiment

Universal has a news sentiment score of 0.79. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This is a higher news sentiment than the 0.53 average news sentiment score of Consumer Staples companies.

News Coverage This Week

MarketBeat has tracked 15 news articles for Universal this week, compared to 5 articles on an average week.

Search Interest

Only 6 people have searched for UVV on MarketBeat in the last 30 days. This is a decrease of -54% compared to the previous 30 days.

MarketBeat Follows

4 people have added Universal to their MarketBeat watchlist in the last 30 days. This is an increase of 300% compared to the previous 30 days.

Company Ownership

• Score: 1.7 / 5
• Insider Trading: N/A

Insider Buying vs. Insider Selling

In the past three months, Universal insiders have not sold or bought any company stock.

Percentage Held by Insiders

Only 3.10% of the stock of Universal is held by insiders.

Percentage Held by Institutions

81.00% of the stock of Universal is held by institutions. High institutional ownership can be a signal of strong market trust in this company.

UVV Stock Analysis - Frequently Asked Questions

How have UVV shares performed this year?

Universal's stock was trading at $54.84 at the beginning of 2025. Since then, UVV stock has decreased by 7.1% and is now trading at $50.95.
View the best growth stocks for 2025 here.

How were Universal's earnings last quarter?

Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV) released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May, 23rd. The company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business earned $607.50 million during the quarter. Universal had a trailing twelve-month return on equity of 8.92% and a net margin of 4.31%.

Is Universal buying back stock?

Universal's board authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 7th 2024, which authorizes the company to repurchase $100,000,000 in shares, according to EventVestor. This means that the company could reacquire up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Who are Universal's major shareholders?

Universal's top institutional shareholders include Nisa Investment Advisors LLC (0.08%), Ritholtz Wealth Management (0.05%) and SG Americas Securities LLC (0.04%). Insiders that own company stock include Preston Douglas Wigner, Theodore G Broome, Candace C Formacek, Thomas H Johnson and Lennart R Freeman.
View institutional ownership trends.

How do I buy shares of Universal?

Shares of UVV stock can be purchased through any online brokerage account. Popular online brokerages with access to the U.S. stock market include Charles Schwab, E*TRADE, Fidelity, and Vanguard Brokerage Services.

What other stocks do shareholders of Universal own?

Based on aggregate information from My MarketBeat watchlists, some other companies that Universal investors own include American Water Works (AWK), Waste Connections (WCN), The RMR Group (RMR), iShares Micro-Cap ETF (IWC), DiamondRock Hospitality (DRH), AUO (AUOTY) and Voyager Therapeutics (VYGR).

Company Calendar

• Last Earnings: 5/23/2018
• Ex-Dividend for 11/4 Dividend: 10/11/2024
• Dividend Payable: 11/04/2024
• Ex-Dividend for 2/3 Dividend: 1/13/2025
• Today: 1/20/2025
• Dividend Payable: 2/03/2025
• Next Earnings (Estimated): 2/05/2025
• Fiscal Year End: 3/31/2025

Industry, Sector and Symbol

• Stock Exchange: NYSE
• Sector: Consumer Staples
• Industry: Farm-product raw materials
• Sub-Industry: Tobacco
• Current Symbol: NYSE:UVV
• CUSIP: 91345610
• CIK: 102037
• Web: www.universalcorp.com
• Phone: (804) 359-9311
• Fax: 804-254-3594
• Employees: 27,000
• Year Founded: N/A

Profitability

• EPS (Most Recent Fiscal Year): $4.86
• Trailing P/E Ratio: 10.48
• Forward P/E Ratio: N/A
• P/E Growth: N/A
• Net Income: $119.60 million
• Net Margins: 4.31%
• Pretax Margin: 5.96%
• Return on Equity: 8.92%
• Return on Assets: 4.43%

Debt

• Debt-to-Equity Ratio: 0.43
• Current Ratio: 2.60
• Quick Ratio: 0.96

Sales & Book Value

• Annual Sales: $2.75 billion
• Price / Sales: 0.46
• Cash Flow: $7.64 per share
• Price / Cash Flow: 6.67
• Book Value: $60.18 per share
• Price / Book: 0.85

Miscellaneous

• Outstanding Shares: 24,690,000
• Free Float: 23,928,000
• Market Cap: $1.26 billion
• Optionable: Optionable
• Beta: 0.80