Universal Corporation $UVV Shares Sold by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon reduced its Universal Corporation stake by 6.2% in the first quarter, selling 22,123 shares and retaining 333,423 shares valued at approximately $17.6 million. Institutional investors collectively own 81% of the company.
• Universal reported a quarterly loss of $0.46 per share, missing the $1.08 analyst consensus, while revenue of $715.2 million also fell short of expectations. Analysts project full-year earnings of $4.30 per share.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.83 per share, implying a 6.1% annual yield, but analyst sentiment remains cautious, with the stock carrying a “Reduce” average rating and recent downgrades.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lessened its holdings in Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV - Free Report) by 6.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 333,423 shares of the company's stock after selling 22,123 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned 1.34% of Universal worth $17,571,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Universal by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,983,924 shares of the company's stock valued at $157,402,000 after buying an additional 35,513 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Universal by 1.6% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,378,295 shares of the company's stock worth $80,272,000 after acquiring an additional 21,763 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Universal by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 853,722 shares of the company's stock worth $45,034,000 after acquiring an additional 37,921 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Universal by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 624,381 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,943,000 after acquiring an additional 5,844 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in Universal by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 610,525 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,205,000 after acquiring an additional 31,961 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.00% of the company's stock.

Universal Stock Up 0.2%

UVV opened at $54.86 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 3.49. The company has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.53, a PEG ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 0.59. Universal Corporation has a one year low of $49.19 and a one year high of $59.38. The business's fifty day moving average is $52.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.38.

Universal (NYSE:UVV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The company reported ($0.46) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($1.54). The firm had revenue of $715.24 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $728.20 million. Universal had a net margin of 1.12% and a return on equity of 4.43%. Analysts anticipate that Universal Corporation will post 4.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This is an increase from Universal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 13th. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. Universal's payout ratio is 257.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Universal news, Director Robert C. Sledd sold 2,845 shares of Universal stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.12, for a total transaction of $153,971.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 11,959 shares in the company, valued at approximately $647,221.08. The trade was a 19.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on UVV shares. Zacks Research cut shares of Universal from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Universal from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce".

Universal Profile

Universal Corporation NYSE: UVV is a global agribusiness company primarily engaged in the procurement, processing and sale of leaf tobacco. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company sources cured leaf tobacco from key growing regions in North and South America, Africa and Asia. Universal serves major multinational tobacco manufacturers by providing a full range of services including inventory management, quality control and logistics support to ensure a consistent and reliable supply of tobacco leaf.

In addition to its core leaf tobacco operations, Universal offers integrated supply-chain services that encompass warehousing, distribution and ingredient sourcing for smokeless and novel tobacco products.

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