CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC Acquires 13,508 Shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 22.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 73,077 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,508 shares during the quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in Unilever were worth $4,103,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC raised 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 raised its position in shares of Unilever by 2.8% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Unilever by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 9,956 shares of the company’s stock worth $565,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its position in Unilever by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 5,646 shares of the company’s stock worth $320,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its stake in Unilever by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 2,966 shares of the company’s stock valued at $168,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 9.67% of the company’s stock.

Unilever Price Performance

UL opened at $59.60 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $57.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.13. The firm has a market cap of $147.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.08, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.47. Unilever PLC has a 1 year low of $46.46 and a 1 year high of $65.87.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.4674 dividend. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio is 53.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. StockNews.com upgraded Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.