Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Buys 6,708 Shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 18.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 43,255 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 6,708 shares during the quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Unilever were worth $2,576,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Unilever during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in Unilever during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Unilever in the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Greenline Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Unilever in the 4th quarter valued at $58,000. 9.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on shares of Unilever in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $73.00 target price for the company. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Unilever to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Unilever from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Unilever from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $70.67.

Unilever Stock Performance

Shares of Unilever stock traded down $0.50 on Thursday, hitting $59.82. The stock had a trading volume of 2,230,787 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,482,205. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $62.16 and a 200 day moving average of $59.89. Unilever PLC has a twelve month low of $54.32 and a twelve month high of $65.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $146.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.14, a PEG ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.41.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a dividend of $0.5151 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. This is a boost from Unilever's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. Unilever's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.03%.

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.