Kennon Green & Company LLC Reduces Stock Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Kennon Green & Company LLC trimmed its holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 16.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,370 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,001 shares during the period. Unilever comprises approximately 2.4% of Kennon Green & Company LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Kennon Green & Company LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $2,393,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UL. Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in Unilever by 51.1% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 672,859 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,239,000 after buying an additional 227,681 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Group LLC raised its position in shares of Unilever by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Manning & Napier Group LLC now owns 3,332,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $161,582,000 after acquiring an additional 47,256 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Unilever by 3,718.5% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 171,641 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,321,000 after purchasing an additional 167,146 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in Unilever during the fourth quarter worth $8,038,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Unilever by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 762,085 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,946,000 after purchasing an additional 98,275 shares during the period. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on UL shares. Morgan Stanley cut Unilever from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $52.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. StockNews.com cut Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.00.

Unilever Stock Performance

NYSE UL traded up $0.11 on Monday, reaching $51.35. 2,532,456 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,883,506. Unilever PLC has a 12 month low of $46.16 and a 12 month high of $55.77. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $49.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.56.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be paid a $0.4556 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.55%.

Unilever Company 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.