Unilever PLC $UL Shares Sold by Procyon Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Procyon Advisors LLC significantly reduced its stake in Unilever PLC by 91.1% in the second quarter, now holding only 6,072 shares valued at $371,000 after selling 62,050 shares.
• Unilever recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.5175, representing an annual yield of 3.4% with a payout ratio of 59.31%.
• Wall Street analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Unilever, with two analysts rating it as a Strong Buy and an average target price of $73.00.

Procyon Advisors LLC lowered its position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 91.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,072 shares of the company's stock after selling 62,050 shares during the quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC's holdings in Unilever were worth $371,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UL. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unilever by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,572 shares of the company's stock valued at $599,000 after acquiring an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in Unilever by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 47,847 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,713,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Unilever in the 4th quarter valued at about $9,934,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,979,000. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of Unilever by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 27,106 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,537,000 after purchasing an additional 1,370 shares in the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. BNP Paribas upgraded Unilever to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on Unilever in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $73.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Jefferies Financial Group restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Unilever in a report on Sunday, August 3rd. Finally, CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of Unilever in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $73.00.

Unilever Price Performance

Unilever stock traded down $0.74 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $60.47. 3,773,080 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,124,153. The firm's fifty day moving average is $61.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.61. The company has a market capitalization of $148.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.40. Unilever PLC has a fifty-two week low of $54.32 and a fifty-two week high of $65.87.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a $0.5175 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Unilever's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.07 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Unilever's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.31%.

About Unilever

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.