Assetmark Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL)

Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 351.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 77,150 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 60,049 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Unilever were worth $4,374,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Unilever in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $853,000. SpiderRock Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Unilever by 24.0% in the 3rd quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC now owns 41,973 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,727,000 after acquiring an additional 8,111 shares during the last quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Unilever by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC now owns 126,357 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,208,000 after acquiring an additional 709 shares during the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Unilever by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,583 shares of the company’s stock worth $493,000 after acquiring an additional 456 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Unilever by 14.1% in the 3rd quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,422 shares of the company’s stock worth $612,000 after acquiring an additional 1,163 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unilever Price Performance

Shares of UL stock opened at $59.24 on Friday. Unilever PLC has a 1 year low of $46.46 and a 1 year high of $65.87. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $56.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.83. The company has a market cap of $146.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.97, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.47.

Unilever Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.4674 per share. This represents a $1.87 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Unilever’s payout ratio is 53.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Unilever from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Unilever in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. DZ Bank raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.33.

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.