Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Reduces Stock Holdings in Unilever PLC $UL

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its stake in Unilever PLC by 0.6%, owning approximately 5.07 million shares worth $302.17 million after selling 28,706 shares in the first quarter.
• Unilever announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.5175, reflecting a yield of 3.4%, with the next payment scheduled for September 12th.
• Analysts have varied opinions on Unilever, with the consensus rating classified as Moderate Buy and a price target of $72.50 following multiple upgrades and downgrades from different firms.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lowered its holdings in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 0.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,074,369 shares of the company's stock after selling 28,706 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 0.21% of Unilever worth $302,172,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UL. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Unilever by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,572 shares of the company's stock worth $599,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Unilever by 22.8% during the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 20,536 shares of the company's stock worth $1,164,000 after purchasing an additional 3,809 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP purchased a new position in Unilever during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $440,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Unilever by 17.2% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 54,951 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,116,000 after buying an additional 8,076 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Unilever by 75.5% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 7,676 shares of the company's stock valued at $435,000 after buying an additional 3,302 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.67% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Unilever Stock Performance

UL traded up $0.6450 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $61.9350. 1,991,425 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,354,531. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $61.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $60.61. The firm has a market cap of $151.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.38. Unilever PLC has a 1 year low of $54.32 and a 1 year high of $65.87.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.5175 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.07 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is a boost from Unilever's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. 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.