West Family Investments Inc. Purchases 814 Shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

West Family Investments Inc. boosted its position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,116 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 814 shares during the quarter. West Family Investments Inc.’s holdings in Unilever were worth $442,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Unilever by 51.1% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 672,859 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,239,000 after acquiring an additional 227,681 shares in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Group LLC boosted its position in Unilever by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Manning & Napier Group LLC now owns 3,332,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $161,582,000 after buying an additional 47,256 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Unilever by 3,718.5% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 171,641 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,321,000 after buying an additional 167,146 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new stake in Unilever in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,038,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in Unilever by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 762,085 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,946,000 after buying an additional 98,275 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on UL shares. Morgan Stanley lowered Unilever from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $52.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. StockNews.com upgraded Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Unilever presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.00.

Unilever Trading Up 0.5 %

Unilever stock traded up $0.24 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $52.11. The company had a trading volume of 1,287,583 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,876,258. Unilever PLC has a 12-month low of $46.16 and a 12-month high of $55.77. The company’s fifty day moving average is $49.15 and its 200-day moving average is $48.64.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a $0.4556 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.50%.

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.