Meridian Wealth Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,751 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 253 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $2,991,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Unilever by 7.3% in 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 period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in Unilever by 66.4% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,454,686 shares of the company’s stock worth $195,881,000 after purchasing an additional 1,378,517 shares during the last quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC grew its position in Unilever by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC now owns 2,874,929 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,008,000 after purchasing an additional 207,549 shares during the period. Equity Investment Corp raised its stake in Unilever by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 2,169,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $122,993,000 after buying an additional 36,922 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in Unilever by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,812,164 shares of the company’s stock valued at $118,588,000 after buying an additional 63,835 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Unilever Trading Up 2.0 %

Unilever stock opened at $57.74 on Tuesday. Unilever PLC has a 12-month low of $46.46 and a 12-month high of $65.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $143.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $56.60 and a 200 day moving average of $59.90.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 3.24%. Unilever’s payout ratio is 53.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. DZ Bank upgraded Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Unilever from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $66.33.

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.