Universal (NYSE:UVV) Stock Price Crosses Below 200 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV)’s stock price passed below its two hundred day moving average during trading on Tuesday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $50.09 and traded as low as $41.45. Universal shares last traded at $41.54, with a volume of 278,437 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UVV has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Universal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 5th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Universal from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Universal from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Universal currently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Universal Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.00 billion, a PE ratio of 52.40, a PEG ratio of 13.06 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.57 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.92.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.18) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.43). Universal had a net margin of 0.67% and a return on equity of 3.50%. The firm had revenue of $523.78 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $587.00 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Universal Corporation will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 9th. Universal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 431.17%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Lennart Freeman sold 1,782 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.82, for a total value of $88,779.24. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,935 shares in the company, valued at $843,701.70. This represents a 9.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Universal

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UVV. Virginia Estate & Retirement Planning Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Universal by 507.5% during the third quarter. Virginia Estate & Retirement Planning Advisors Inc. now owns 1,215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 1,015 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal by 84.2% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 3,353 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal by 8.7% in the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 25,705 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,074,000 after purchasing an additional 2,064 shares in the last quarter. Adams Asset Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Universal by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Adams Asset Advisors LLC now owns 134,972 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,640,000 after purchasing an additional 1,080 shares during the period. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Universal during the 3rd quarter valued at $126,000. Institutional investors own 81.00% of the company’s stock.

About Universal

Universal Corporation (NYSE: UVV) is a global leaf tobacco supplier and processor. Through its operating companies, the company purchases tobacco from growers, processes and blends leaf, and supplies tobacco products and related materials to manufacturers of cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco and other tobacco products. Its services include crop contracting, agricultural support, curing, processing, storage, packaging and logistics.

Founded in 1918 and headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, Universal has developed an international network of tobacco sourcing, processing and distribution operations.