Anchor Capital Advisors LLC Sells 1,734 Shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Anchor Capital Advisors LLC reduced its position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 52,221 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,734 shares during the quarter. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $2,961,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UL. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Unilever by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 42,512 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,762,000 after buying an additional 3,138 shares during the period. Financial Advocates Investment Management lifted its holdings in shares of Unilever by 8.7% during the third quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 4,264 shares of the company’s stock valued at $277,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Unilever by 4.5% during the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 30,017 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,950,000 after acquiring an additional 1,285 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in shares of Unilever by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 130,757 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,494,000 after purchasing an additional 10,759 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oak Ridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Unilever by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 109,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,136,000 after purchasing an additional 7,196 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 9.67% of the company’s stock.

Unilever Stock Performance

UL stock opened at $56.61 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $56.59 and a 200-day moving average of $59.93. Unilever PLC has a twelve month low of $46.46 and a twelve month high of $65.87.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.4674 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.87 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on UL. StockNews.com cut shares of Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. DZ Bank raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.33.

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.