Jump Financial LLC Grows Stock Position in Universal Corporation $UVV

Key Points

• Jump Financial LLC increased its holdings in Universal Corporation by 54.3%, owning 16,500 shares valued at approximately $925,000 after purchasing an additional 5,804 shares.
• Insiders, including COO Airton L. Hentschke and Director Lennart R. Freeman, have recently sold shares, indicating a decrease in their ownership positions.
• Universal Corporation announced a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, with an annualized yield of 5.9%, to be paid on November 3rd.

Jump Financial LLC grew its position in Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV - Free Report) by 54.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,500 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,804 shares during the quarter. Jump Financial LLC owned 0.07% of Universal worth $925,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UVV. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Universal by 38.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,149 shares of the company's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in Universal in the 1st quarter worth approximately $202,000. Cetera Investment Advisers bought a new stake in Universal in the 1st quarter worth approximately $233,000. Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in Universal in the 1st quarter worth approximately $281,000. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp increased its position in shares of Universal by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 5,654 shares of the company's stock valued at $317,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.00% of the company's stock.

Universal Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE UVV traded down $0.26 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $54.86. 210,814 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 226,978. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.35, a P/E/G ratio of 6.19 and a beta of 0.75. Universal Corporation has a 1 year low of $49.40 and a 1 year high of $67.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $55.41 and a 200 day moving average of $56.05.

Universal (NYSE:UVV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $593.76 million during the quarter. Universal had a return on equity of 8.46% and a net margin of 3.51%.

Universal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, October 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. Universal's dividend payout ratio is 79.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Universal news, COO Airton L. Hentschke sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.94, for a total value of $549,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 135,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,423,987.26. This trade represents a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert C. Sledd sold 4,617 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.25, for a total value of $245,855.25. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 15,698 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $835,918.50. This trade represents a 22.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 17,417 shares of company stock worth $943,347 in the last three months. 1.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UVV has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Universal from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Zacks Research raised Universal to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Universal presently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Universal Company Profile

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.