Private Trust Co. NA Lowers Stock Holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Private Trust Co. NA lessened its stake in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,677 shares of the company’s stock after selling 572 shares during the quarter. Private Trust Co. NA’s holdings in Unilever were worth $564,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Unilever by 23.1% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,141,878 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,312,000 after buying an additional 214,635 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Unilever by 16.9% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 110,528 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,180,000 after purchasing an additional 15,941 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in Unilever by 249.5% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,748,329 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,204,000 after buying an additional 1,248,136 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Unilever by 236.2% during the 3rd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 30,520 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,997,000 after acquiring an additional 21,441 shares during the period. Finally, Radnor Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Unilever in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,388,000. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on UL shares. UBS Group raised Unilever to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Bank of America raised shares of Unilever from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $47.00 to $72.00 in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. StockNews.com cut shares of Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unilever has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $61.75.

Unilever Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE UL opened at $59.11 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $61.61 and a 200-day moving average of $59.73. Unilever PLC has a 12 month low of $46.46 and a 12 month high of $65.87.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.4755 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. This is an increase from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35.

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.