Yacktman Asset Management LP Sells 39,866 Shares of Unilever PLC $UL

Key Points

• Yacktman Asset Management trimmed its Unilever stake by 16.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 39,866 shares and leaving it with 195,803 shares valued at about $12.8 million.
• Unilever reported weaker-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.75 versus the $1.75 consensus and revenue of $11.87 billion versus $31.39 billion estimated by analysts.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.5449 per share, equal to an annualized dividend of $2.18 and a yield of 3.7%, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with an average price target of $65.55.

Yacktman Asset Management LP reduced its stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 16.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 195,803 shares of the company's stock after selling 39,866 shares during the quarter. Yacktman Asset Management LP's holdings in Unilever were worth $12,806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UL. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Unilever by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,572 shares of the company's stock valued at $599,000 after acquiring an additional 539 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Unilever by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 35,007 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,085,000 after acquiring an additional 1,587 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL raised its holdings in Unilever by 39.7% in the 2nd quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 15,848 shares of the company's stock valued at $969,000 after acquiring an additional 4,501 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its holdings in Unilever by 70.5% in the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 378,313 shares of the company's stock valued at $23,141,000 after acquiring an additional 156,404 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in shares of Unilever by 17.4% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 427,577 shares of the company's stock worth $26,155,000 after purchasing an additional 63,376 shares during the period. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Unilever Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of UL opened at $58.38 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $61.30 and its 200-day moving average is $65.42. Unilever PLC has a 12 month low of $54.95 and a 12 month high of $74.97.

Unilever (NYSE:UL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.75 by ($1.00). The company had revenue of $11.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.39 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Unilever PLC will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.5449 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on UL. Argus raised shares of Unilever to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Kepler Capital Markets cut shares of Unilever from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised shares of Unilever from an "underperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed an "underperform" rating on shares of Unilever in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Unilever currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $65.55.

About Unilever

Unilever PLC is a global consumer goods company with roots dating back to the early 20th century, formed from the merger of the British firm Lever Brothers and the Dutch company Margarine Unie. The company develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of branded products in personal care, home care and foods and refreshments. Unilever's corporate structure and listings reflect its long history in both the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, and it operates at scale across diverse consumer markets worldwide.

Unilever's business is organized around major product categories—Beauty & Personal Care, Home Care and Foods & Refreshment—and includes numerous well-known consumer brands across those categories.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.