RD Lewis Holdings Inc. Makes New Investment in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

RD Lewis Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,926 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $229,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Unilever in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $176,806,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of Unilever by 981.6% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,076,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,868,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884,216 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Unilever by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 17,940,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,017,253,000 after buying an additional 1,214,563 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. raised its stake in Unilever by 493.4% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 1,105,064 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,785,000 after buying an additional 918,841 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Icon Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Unilever by 7,466.0% during the third quarter. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 629,569 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,897,000 after buying an additional 621,248 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.67% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Royal Bank of Canada cut Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, DZ Bank raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $66.33.

Unilever Price Performance

Shares of UL opened at $59.73 on Tuesday. Unilever PLC has a one year low of $46.46 and a one year high of $65.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $148.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.12, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a fifty day moving average of $57.04 and a 200 day moving average of $59.62.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.4674 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.13%. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.01%.

Unilever 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.