16,023 Shares in Unilever PLC $UL Bought by Ameritas Advisory Services LLC

Key Points

• Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired 16,023 shares of Unilever PLC valued at approximately $980,000 in the second quarter, indicating strong interest from institutional investors.
• Analysts have varying ratings on Unilever, with three analysts giving it a Strong Buy rating, while others suggest a Moderate Buy consensus and a target price of $73.00.
• Unilever recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.5175, marking a slight increase from the previous dividend and reflecting a 3.5% yield for investors.

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 16,023 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $980,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Unilever by 13.9% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 28,100,442 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,673,381,000 after buying an additional 3,421,054 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Unilever during the first quarter valued at about $45,413,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in Unilever by 764.5% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 775,561 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,185,000 after buying an additional 685,848 shares during the period. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. purchased a new stake in Unilever during the first quarter valued at about $34,533,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in Unilever by 220.9% during the first quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 626,102 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,284,000 after buying an additional 431,005 shares during the period. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on UL. CICC Research began coverage on shares of Unilever in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Unilever in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Jefferies Financial Group restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Unilever in a research report on Sunday, August 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $73.00.

Unilever Price Performance

Shares of UL opened at $59.04 on Friday. Unilever PLC has a one year low of $54.32 and a one year high of $65.66. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $144.85 billion, a PE ratio of 16.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.40.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a $0.5175 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Unilever's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.07 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. Unilever's payout ratio is currently 59.31%.

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.

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