Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) Stock Position Lifted by Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 37.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,265 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 4,417 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Unilever were worth $969,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Unilever by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 17,940,963 shares of the company's stock worth $1,017,253,000 after purchasing an additional 1,214,563 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in Unilever by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 7,906,824 shares of the company's stock valued at $448,317,000 after acquiring an additional 257,538 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Unilever by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,103,075 shares of the company's stock valued at $289,345,000 after acquiring an additional 250,053 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Unilever by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,830,532 shares of the company's stock valued at $217,191,000 after acquiring an additional 327,329 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its position in Unilever by 140.1% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,719,284 shares of the company's stock valued at $210,883,000 after acquiring an additional 2,170,242 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 9.67% of the company's stock.

Unilever Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:UL opened at $63.03 on Friday. Unilever PLC has a 1 year low of $54.32 and a 1 year high of $65.87. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $59.29. The firm has a market cap of $154.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.44.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.5151 per share. This is a positive change from Unilever's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Unilever's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on UL shares. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on Unilever in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group upgraded Unilever from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. DZ Bank upgraded Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Wall Street Zen cut Unilever from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised Unilever to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given 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.com, Unilever has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.67.

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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