Clearbridge Investments LLC Acquires 2,170,242 Shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 140.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,719,284 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,170,242 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $210,883,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Unilever during the 4th quarter worth approximately $92,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its position in shares of Unilever by 22.7% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 73,077 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,103,000 after purchasing an additional 13,508 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new position in shares of Unilever in the fourth quarter worth $1,768,000. Portland Global Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Unilever by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Portland Global Advisors LLC now owns 107,066 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,071,000 after buying an additional 1,166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Unilever by 10.6% during the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 4,703 shares of the company’s stock valued at $267,000 after buying an additional 449 shares during the period. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. 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. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Unilever currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.33.

Unilever Price Performance

Shares of UL opened at $59.18 on Monday. Unilever PLC has a 1 year low of $46.46 and a 1 year high of $65.87. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $57.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.21. The firm has a market cap of $146.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.47.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.4674 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.87 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.16%. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.01%.

Unilever 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.