TrueMark Investments LLC Acquires New Shares in Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV)

TrueMark Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 29,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,630,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UVV. Jane Street Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Universal by 30.4% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 49,849 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,647,000 after acquiring an additional 11,612 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Universal in the third quarter worth approximately $697,000. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Universal by 6.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,218,793 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,730,000 after purchasing an additional 71,773 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its position in Universal by 341.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 40,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,155,000 after purchasing an additional 31,370 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Universal by 85.6% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 22,020 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,169,000 after buying an additional 10,155 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.00% of the company’s stock.

Universal Stock Performance

UVV stock opened at $53.64 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.60 and a quick ratio of 0.96. Universal Co. has a 1 year low of $45.19 and a 1 year high of $59.13. The company has a market cap of $1.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.04 and a beta of 0.79. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $53.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.26.

Universal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.04%. Universal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.67%.

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.