Bank of Montreal Can Cuts Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Bank of Montreal Can reduced its stake in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 66.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 612,996 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,199,168 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in Unilever were worth $34,757,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Unilever Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE UL opened at $59.95 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $148.51 billion, a PE ratio of 17.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.42. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $58.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $58.88. Unilever PLC has a twelve month low of $46.46 and a twelve month high of $65.87.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.4674 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.12%. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Unilever 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.