Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Unilever PLC experienced a significant decline in short interest, with a drop of 31.4% in September, bringing the total to 3,250,000 shares.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on Unilever, with two rating it a Strong Buy and three giving it a Hold, leading to an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $73.00.
• The company has declared a recent quarterly dividend of $0.5175 per share, reflecting a 3.3% yield, which is an increase from the prior dividend amount.

Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL - Get Free Report) saw a significant drop in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totaling 3,250,000 shares, a drop of 31.4% from the September 15th total of 4,740,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,260,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.4 days. Approximately 0.1% of the company's stock are short sold. Approximately 0.1% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,260,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.4 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Unilever in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research lowered Unilever from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of Unilever in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Sunday, August 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $73.00.

Unilever Stock Performance

Shares of Unilever stock traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $62.28. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,898,065 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,566,691. The stock has a market cap of $152.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.85, a P/E/G ratio of 4.70 and a beta of 0.40. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $61.57 and a 200-day moving average of $61.72. Unilever has a twelve month low of $54.32 and a twelve month high of $65.66.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a $0.5175 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.07 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. This is a boost from Unilever's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. Unilever's dividend payout ratio is 59.31%.

Institutional Trading of Unilever

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Unilever by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,572 shares of the company's stock valued at $599,000 after buying an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Unilever by 24.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 13,127 shares of the company's stock valued at $782,000 after buying an additional 2,544 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Unilever by 0.8% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 87,674 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,221,000 after buying an additional 731 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Unilever by 11.7% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 61,421 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,658,000 after buying an additional 6,440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keudell Morrison Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Unilever by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management now owns 4,219 shares of the company's stock worth $251,000 after buying an additional 430 shares in the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unilever Company 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.

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