Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Invests $454,000 in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 8,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $454,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Unilever in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $151,263,000. Fiera Capital Corp raised its stake in Unilever by 1,866.0% in the second quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 2,135,859 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,451,000 after buying an additional 2,027,221 shares during the period. Equity Investment Corp raised its stake in Unilever by 107.1% in the first quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 2,910,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $146,091,000 after buying an additional 1,505,233 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Unilever by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 34,494,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,672,275,000 after buying an additional 1,114,417 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in 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. 9.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 3rd. Bank of America upgraded Unilever from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Unilever in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Unilever from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 7th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Unilever to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Unilever currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.75.

Unilever Price Performance

Unilever stock opened at $64.41 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $62.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $55.71. Unilever PLC has a one year low of $46.16 and a one year high of $65.86. The firm has a market cap of $160.53 billion, a PE ratio of 18.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.48.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were issued a $0.4773 dividend. This represents a $1.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This is an increase from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.10%.

Unilever 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.