Guardian Capital LP Boosts Stake in Unilever PLC $UL

Guardian Capital LP lifted its position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 165,353 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,849 shares during the quarter. Guardian Capital LP’s holdings in Unilever were worth $9,802,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UL. Pullen Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Unilever by 0.6% in the third quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 28,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,683,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Unilever by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 9,873 shares of the company’s stock valued at $585,000 after buying an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Unilever by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 40,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,376,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Unilever by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,777 shares of the company’s stock worth $109,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period. Finally, Townsend & Associates Inc increased its stake in shares of Unilever by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Townsend & Associates Inc now owns 30,155 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,903,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.67% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. DZ Bank lowered shares of Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley set a $60.10 target price on shares of Unilever and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Kepler Capital Markets cut Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. UBS Group restated a “sell” rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane set a $71.00 price objective on Unilever and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $65.55.

Unilever Stock Performance

NYSE:UL opened at $66.81 on Monday. Unilever PLC has a fifty-two week low of $61.78 and a fifty-two week high of $74.97. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $68.27.

Unilever (NYSE:UL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.75 by ($1.00). The firm had revenue of $11.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.39 billion. On average, research analysts forecast that Unilever PLC will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a $0.5547 dividend. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th.

About Unilever

Unilever PLC is a global consumer goods company with roots dating back to the early 20th century, formed from the merger of the British firm Lever Brothers and the Dutch company Margarine Unie. The company develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of branded products in personal care, home care and foods and refreshments. Unilever’s corporate structure and listings reflect its long history in both the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, and it operates at scale across diverse consumer markets worldwide.

Unilever’s business is organized around major product categories—Beauty & Personal Care, Home Care and Foods & Refreshment—and includes numerous well-known consumer brands across those categories.