Stifel Financial Corp Acquires 88,404 Shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Free Report) by 20.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 527,458 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 88,404 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp's holdings in Unilever were worth $29,907,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Unilever by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 29,151 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,653,000 after buying an additional 3,800 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its position in Unilever by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 16,872 shares of the company's stock valued at $956,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in Unilever by 187.4% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 55,190 shares of the company's stock worth $3,129,000 after acquiring an additional 35,986 shares in the last quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Unilever by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC now owns 67,308 shares of the company's stock worth $3,816,000 after purchasing an additional 6,747 shares during the period. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Unilever by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 254,593 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,435,000 after purchasing an additional 42,351 shares in the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. StockNews.com raised Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. DZ Bank raised shares of Unilever from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Unilever from a "sector perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Unilever has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $66.33.

Unilever Stock Performance

Shares of UL traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $63.39. 833,946 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,877,198. The stock has a market cap of $156.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.42. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $59.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.83. Unilever PLC has a 1 year low of $51.45 and a 1 year high of $65.87.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $0.5151 dividend. This is an increase from Unilever's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Unilever's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.03%.

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.