First Eagle Investment Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 574,689 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,149 shares during the quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $32,585,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Unilever during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 9.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on UL. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.33.

Unilever Stock Down 0.7 %

NYSE:UL opened at $58.62 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.75. The company has a market cap of $145.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.47. Unilever PLC has a 52 week low of $46.46 and a 52 week high of $65.87.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.4674 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.19%. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.01%.

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.