Mengis Capital Management Inc. Decreases Position in Unilever PLC $UL

Mengis Capital Management Inc. cut its position in Unilever PLC (NYSE:UL) by 18.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 10,962 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,450 shares during the period. Mengis Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Unilever were worth $671,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Callan Family Office LLC raised its holdings in Unilever by 199.4% in the second quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 46,228 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,828,000 after buying an additional 30,790 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL raised its holdings in Unilever by 5.5% in the second quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 108,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,631,000 after buying an additional 5,652 shares during the last quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Unilever by 42.0% in the second quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 44,223 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,705,000 after buying an additional 13,071 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in Unilever by 2.6% in the second quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 138,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,467,000 after buying an additional 3,523 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optas LLC raised its holdings in Unilever by 23.0% in the second quarter. Optas LLC now owns 7,407 shares of the company’s stock worth $453,000 after buying an additional 1,387 shares during the last quarter. 9.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unilever Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE UL opened at $58.94 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $61.44 and a 200 day moving average of $61.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $144.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.26 and a beta of 0.40. Unilever PLC has a 12-month low of $54.32 and a 12-month high of $65.66.

Unilever Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.5175 per share. This represents a $2.07 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. This is a positive change from Unilever’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Unilever’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Unilever from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Sunday, August 3rd. CICC Research assumed coverage on shares of Unilever in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Unilever in a research note on Wednesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Unilever presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $73.00.

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.