Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys 221,958 Shares of Unilever PLC $UL

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Unilever PLC by 7.1% during Q1, owning 3,340,231 shares valued at approximately $198.9 million.
• Unilever recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.5175, up from $0.52, representing an annual yield of 3.4%.
• Analyst ratings for Unilever vary, with a current average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $72.50.

Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 7.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,340,231 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 221,958 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.14% of Unilever worth $198,911,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in UL. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Unilever by 33.2% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 934,804 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,668,000 after purchasing an additional 232,945 shares during the last quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Unilever by 69.7% in the first quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 14,282 shares of the company's stock valued at $850,000 after acquiring an additional 5,867 shares in the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. grew its stake in Unilever by 70.6% during the first quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 15,030 shares of the company's stock worth $895,000 after buying an additional 6,220 shares in the last quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. grew its stake in Unilever by 56.7% during the first quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 13,958 shares of the company's stock worth $832,000 after buying an additional 5,051 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in Unilever by 25.5% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,557,291 shares of the company's stock worth $92,768,000 after buying an additional 316,638 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 9.67% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated an "underperform" rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Sunday, August 3rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Unilever from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on shares of Unilever in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $73.00 price objective on the stock. BNP Paribas raised shares of Unilever to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Unilever from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.50.

Unilever Trading Down 1.1%

UL stock opened at $60.98 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $149.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 0.38. Unilever PLC has a 12 month low of $54.32 and a 12 month high of $65.87. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $61.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $60.58.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.5175 dividend. This is a boost from Unilever's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.07 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. Unilever's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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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