William Blair Investment Management LLC Lowers Stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

William Blair Investment Management LLC cut its position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 29.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 17,386 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,258 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $986,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

Unilever Stock Performance

NYSE UL opened at $58.91 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $146.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.47. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $57.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $59.57. Unilever PLC has a fifty-two week low of $46.46 and a fifty-two week high of $65.87.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.4674 dividend. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on UL. DZ Bank raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Royal Bank of Canada cut Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. 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 company. According to MarketBeat, Unilever 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.