Whittier Trust Co. Has $1.41 Million Holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Whittier Trust Co. trimmed its holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 28.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,775 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,748 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Unilever were worth $1,405,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Unilever by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 17,940,963 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,017,253,000 after buying an additional 1,214,563 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Unilever by 66.4% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,454,686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $195,881,000 after buying an additional 1,378,517 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter worth approximately $176,806,000. Hamlin Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Unilever by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC now owns 2,874,929 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,008,000 after acquiring an additional 207,549 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Equity Investment Corp increased its stake in Unilever by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 2,169,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $122,993,000 after acquiring an additional 36,922 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Unilever Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of UL stock opened at $58.64 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $145.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.80, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.47. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $57.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $59.53. Unilever PLC has a 12 month low of $46.46 and a 12 month high of $65.87.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.4674 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.19%. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on UL shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. DZ Bank raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.33.

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.