Boston Common Asset Management LLC Lowers Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Boston Common Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 19.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 210,376 shares of the company's stock after selling 51,906 shares during the quarter. Boston Common Asset Management LLC's holdings in Unilever were worth $12,528,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. May Hill Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Unilever in the 4th quarter worth about $296,000. Auxano Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Unilever by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Auxano Advisors LLC now owns 30,840 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,749,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares during the period. Stonegate Investment Group LLC grew its position in Unilever by 155.2% during the 4th quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 8,415 shares of the company's stock worth $477,000 after acquiring an additional 5,117 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Unilever by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 655,964 shares of the company's stock worth $37,193,000 after acquiring an additional 9,528 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Argent Trust Co grew its position in Unilever by 34.2% during the 4th quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 45,387 shares of the company's stock worth $2,573,000 after acquiring an additional 11,555 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on UL shares. BNP Paribas upgraded Unilever to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. DZ Bank upgraded Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered Unilever from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. UBS Group upgraded Unilever from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on Unilever in a research report on Thursday. They set an "outperform" rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Unilever presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $70.67.

Unilever Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of UL stock traded up $0.27 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $63.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,356,356 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,504,971. The stock has a market capitalization of $156.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.44. Unilever PLC has a one year low of $54.32 and a one year high of $65.87. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $62.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.12.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $0.5151 dividend. This is a positive change from Unilever's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Unilever's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.03%.

About Unilever

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.