Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Has $241.15 Million Position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 26.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 4,384,944 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 911,443 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.18% of Unilever worth $241,145,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in UL. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Unilever by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 34,494,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,672,275,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114,417 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Unilever by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 10,830,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $525,051,000 after buying an additional 951,446 shares during the period. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Unilever by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 6,548,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $317,459,000 after acquiring an additional 329,705 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unilever by 19.3% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 4,132,640 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,416,000 after acquiring an additional 668,913 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Unilever in the 4th quarter valued at $151,263,000. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on UL shares. Bank of America raised Unilever from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $47.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. UBS Group upgraded Unilever to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Unilever in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price target for the company. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Unilever from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Unilever from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Unilever has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.75.

Unilever Price Performance

Unilever stock opened at $64.39 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $61.80 and its 200-day moving average is $55.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $160.48 billion, a PE ratio of 18.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.48. Unilever PLC has a fifty-two week low of $46.16 and a fifty-two week high of $65.86.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were given a dividend of $0.4773 per share. This represents a $1.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This is an increase from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Unilever’s payout ratio is 55.10%.

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.