Cozad Asset Management Inc. Buys 746 Shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Cozad Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 7.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,651 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 746 shares during the quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Unilever were worth $604,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of UL. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Unilever by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $524,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Timber Creek Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Unilever by 0.5% in 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 in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Unilever by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 5,646 shares of the company’s stock valued at $320,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its position in shares of Unilever by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 2,966 shares of the company’s stock worth $168,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alhambra Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unilever by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC now owns 4,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on UL. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Royal Bank of Canada cut Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $66.33.

Unilever Stock Up 1.7 %

UL opened at $59.73 on Tuesday. Unilever PLC has a twelve month low of $46.46 and a twelve month high of $65.87. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $57.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $59.62. The stock has a market cap of $148.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.12, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.47.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.4674 per share. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.01%.

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.