Analysts Set Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) PT at $48.00

Shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) have received an average rating of “Reduce” from the five analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has assigned a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $48.00.

A number of analysts have commented on UL shares. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Unilever from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Unilever from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $52.00 to $48.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Unilever from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 11th.

Unilever Trading Up 1.0 %

UL stock opened at $50.13 on Friday. Unilever has a 12 month low of $46.16 and a 12 month high of $55.99. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $49.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $48.74.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were paid a $0.4582 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a $1.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.66%.

Institutional Trading of Unilever

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UL. Citigroup Inc. boosted its position in shares of Unilever by 51.1% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 672,859 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,239,000 after purchasing an additional 227,681 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in shares of Unilever by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 47,772 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,360,000 after purchasing an additional 1,589 shares during the period. St. James Investment Company LLC boosted its position in shares of Unilever by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. St. James Investment Company LLC now owns 733,123 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,216,000 after purchasing an additional 74,539 shares during the period. ProVise Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Unilever by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. ProVise Management Group LLC now owns 131,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,496,000 after purchasing an additional 14,404 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in shares of Unilever by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 394,801 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,505,000 after purchasing an additional 6,341 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.67% of the company’s stock.

About Unilever

Unilever PLC operates as a fast-moving consumer goods company. It operates through Beauty & Wellbeing, Personal Care, Home Care, Nutrition, and Ice Cream segments. 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, which includes the vitamins, minerals, and supplements.