Cetera Investment Advisers Increases Holdings in Unilever PLC $UL

Key Points

• Cetera Investment Advisers increased its Unilever stake by 8.5% in the first quarter, acquiring 27,295 additional shares for a total of 349,916 shares valued at approximately $19.9 million.
• Other major institutional investors, including Bank of America, Raymond James, T. Rowe Price and Thrivent Financial, also increased their positions; institutions collectively own 9.67% of Unilever’s stock.
• Unilever shares opened at $61.28, while analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with a $65.55 price target. Recent quarterly results missed estimates, with EPS of $0.92 versus the $1.85 consensus and revenue of $14.62 billion versus $29.49 billion expected.

Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 8.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 349,916 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 27,295 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers' holdings in Unilever were worth $19,935,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UL. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of Unilever by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,773,638 shares of the company's stock valued at $342,261,000 after buying an additional 91,049 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new position in Unilever in the fourth quarter worth approximately $268,704,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in Unilever by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 3,616,603 shares of the company's stock worth $236,526,000 after acquiring an additional 323,393 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Unilever by 44.3% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,067,651 shares of the company's stock worth $200,625,000 after acquiring an additional 942,286 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in Unilever by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 2,608,297 shares of the company's stock valued at $170,586,000 after purchasing an additional 339,997 shares during the period. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unilever Stock Performance

Unilever stock opened at $61.28 on Tuesday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $59.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.27. Unilever PLC has a 1-year low of $54.75 and a 1-year high of $74.97.

Unilever (NYSE:UL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.93). The firm had revenue of $14.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $29.49 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Unilever PLC will post 3.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on UL shares. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed an "underperform" rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Zacks Research downgraded Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. DZ Bank raised shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised shares of Unilever from an "underperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Unilever from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $65.55.

Unilever Profile

Unilever PLC is a global consumer goods company with roots dating back to the early 20th century, formed from the merger of the British firm Lever Brothers and the Dutch company Margarine Unie. The company develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of branded products in personal care, home care and foods and refreshments. Unilever's corporate structure and listings reflect its long history in both the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, and it operates at scale across diverse consumer markets worldwide.

Unilever's business is organized around major product categories—Beauty & Personal Care, Home Care and Foods & Refreshment—and includes numerous well-known consumer brands across those categories.

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