Intech Investment Management LLC Purchases 63,749 Shares of Universal Corporation $UVV

Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV) by 306.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 84,568 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 63,749 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Universal were worth $4,725,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its position in shares of Universal by 180.5% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 438,134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,517,000 after purchasing an additional 281,920 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Universal by 1,218.7% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 123,602 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,199,000 after buying an additional 114,229 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Universal during the second quarter valued at approximately $6,196,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Universal during the second quarter valued at approximately $6,131,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Universal in the second quarter worth approximately $4,306,000. 81.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on UVV shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Universal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings lowered Universal from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Universal from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Universal Stock Performance

NYSE UVV opened at $53.71 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 2.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Universal Corporation has a twelve month low of $49.96 and a twelve month high of $67.33. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $54.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $54.02. The firm has a market cap of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.66.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by ($0.57). Universal had a return on equity of 6.49% and a net margin of 2.93%.The business had revenue of $861.29 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $927.20 million.

Universal Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 15th. Universal’s dividend payout ratio is 96.76%.

Universal Company Profile

Universal Corporation (NYSE: UVV) is a global agribusiness company primarily engaged in the procurement, processing and sale of leaf tobacco. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company sources cured leaf tobacco from key growing regions in North and South America, Africa and Asia. Universal serves major multinational tobacco manufacturers by providing a full range of services including inventory management, quality control and logistics support to ensure a consistent and reliable supply of tobacco leaf.

In addition to its core leaf tobacco operations, Universal offers integrated supply-chain services that encompass warehousing, distribution and ingredient sourcing for smokeless and novel tobacco products.