Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV) Raises Dividend to $0.81 Per Share

Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, May 23rd, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Monday, July 8th will be paid a dividend of 0.81 per share on Monday, August 5th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.97%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 8th. This is an increase from Universal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80.

Universal has raised its dividend payment by an average of 1.3% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 54 consecutive years.

Universal Stock Performance

UVV stock traded down $6.77 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $46.51. The company's stock had a trading volume of 737,206 shares, compared to its average volume of 251,776. The stock has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.76 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $51.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.84. Universal has a 1 year low of $44.40 and a 1 year high of $67.80.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Universal from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 10th.

About Universal

Universal Corporation processes and supplies leaf tobacco and plant-based ingredients worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Tobacco Operations; and Ingredients Operations. It is involved in the procuring, financing, processing, packing, storing, and shipping leaf tobacco for sale to manufacturers of consumer tobacco products.