Ballentine Partners LLC Acquires 1,234 Shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Ballentine Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,444 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,234 shares during the quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $959,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UL. Lincoln National Corp grew its stake in shares of Unilever by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 6,916 shares of the company’s stock worth $335,000 after acquiring an additional 605 shares in the last quarter. First United Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Moran Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,055,000. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,160,000. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Unilever by 22.8% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 2,529 shares of the company’s stock worth $123,000 after acquiring an additional 470 shares in the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Unilever Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of Unilever stock opened at $65.58 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $54.82. Unilever PLC has a 1 year low of $46.16 and a 1 year high of $65.86.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were issued a dividend of $0.4773 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $1.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.91%. This is an increase from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on UL. Bank of America raised Unilever from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $72.00 in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. StockNews.com raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 3rd. Redburn Atlantic raised Unilever from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 7th. UBS Group raised Unilever to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Unilever from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $61.75.

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.