Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV) Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its position in Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,943,146 shares of the company’s stock after selling 15,033 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 11.98% of Universal worth $198,133,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Universal by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,906,609 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,353,000 after purchasing an additional 10,875 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Universal during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $71,187,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Universal by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 483,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,527,000 after buying an additional 5,930 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Universal by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 378,376 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,472,000 after acquiring an additional 28,016 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Insight Folios Inc raised its stake in shares of Universal by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Insight Folios Inc now owns 107,741 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,253,000 after acquiring an additional 4,645 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.00% of the company’s stock.

Universal Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of Universal stock opened at $47.85 on Wednesday. Universal Co. has a twelve month low of $44.40 and a twelve month high of $67.80. The stock has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.03 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $49.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $53.04.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 22nd. The company reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter. Universal had a return on equity of 8.81% and a net margin of 4.35%. The company had revenue of $770.86 million during the quarter.

Universal Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 8th will be given a $0.81 dividend. This is an increase from Universal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 8th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.77%. Universal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.09%.

Universal Company Profile

Universal Corporation processes and supplies leaf tobacco and plant-based ingredients worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Tobacco Operations; and Ingredients Operations. It is involved in the procuring, financing, processing, packing, storing, and shipping leaf tobacco for sale to manufacturers of consumer tobacco products.