Powers Advisory Group LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Powers Advisory Group LLC reduced its stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 5.1% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 8,914 shares of the company’s stock after selling 480 shares during the period. Powers Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $531,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Unilever by 20.8% in the first quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC now owns 31,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,879,000 after acquiring an additional 5,425 shares in the last quarter. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE purchased a new position in Unilever during the first quarter worth about $3,779,000. Verity & Verity LLC purchased a new position in Unilever during the first quarter worth about $208,000. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its position in Unilever by 1.3% during the first quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 144,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,626,000 after buying an additional 1,833 shares during the period. Finally, apricus wealth LLC lifted its position in Unilever by 3.9% during the first quarter. apricus wealth LLC now owns 58,736 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,498,000 after buying an additional 2,220 shares during the period. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on UL. Wall Street Zen downgraded Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. DZ Bank upgraded Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on Unilever in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $73.00 target price on the stock. BNP Paribas upgraded Unilever to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Unilever from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.67.

Unilever Price Performance

NYSE UL opened at $62.62 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.43. Unilever PLC has a 1-year low of $54.32 and a 1-year high of $65.87. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $62.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.45.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a $0.5151 dividend. This is a positive change from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Unilever’s payout ratio is currently 59.03%.

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.