Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. Grows Stake in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 13.6% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,465 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 776 shares during the quarter. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Unilever were worth $385,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mission Wealth Management LP grew its position in Unilever by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 11,497 shares of the company’s stock worth $685,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Unilever by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 16,246 shares of the company’s stock worth $967,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Unilever by 0.8% during the first quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 21,492 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,280,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management lifted its holdings in Unilever by 0.4% during the first quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 39,953 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,379,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tyler Stone Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Unilever by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 6,576 shares of the company’s stock worth $373,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.67% of the company’s stock.

Unilever Stock Up 0.9%

UL stock opened at $60.91 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $149.46 billion, a PE ratio of 17.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.41. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $62.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.01. Unilever PLC has a twelve month low of $54.32 and a twelve month high of $65.87.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $0.5151 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. This is a boost from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. Unilever’s payout ratio is 59.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on UL. UBS Group upgraded Unilever from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. BNP Paribas raised shares of Unilever to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on Unilever in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $73.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unilever has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.50.

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.