Unilever (NYSE:UL) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Unilever (NYSE:UL) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Wednesday morning.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. DZ Bank raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.75.

Unilever Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UL opened at $56.02 on Wednesday. Unilever has a twelve month low of $46.46 and a twelve month high of $65.87. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $59.98.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The business 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. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Unilever

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Unilever by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $524,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. 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 valued at $373,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its holdings in shares of Unilever by 7.0% during the third quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 2,781 shares of the company’s stock valued at $181,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Unilever by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 9,956 shares of the company’s stock valued at $565,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Timber Creek Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Unilever by 0.5% during the third quarter. Timber Creek Capital Management LLC now owns 39,530 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,568,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.