Pzena Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Universal Corporation $UVV

Pzena Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV) by 32.1% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 337,504 shares of the company’s stock after selling 159,475 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Universal were worth $18,856,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Universal by 1.6% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,378,295 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,272,000 after buying an additional 21,763 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its position in Universal by 180.5% during the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 438,134 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,517,000 after acquiring an additional 281,920 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Universal by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 380,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,151,000 after acquiring an additional 3,958 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in Universal by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 278,426 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,216,000 after acquiring an additional 12,954 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC raised its holdings in Universal by 29.9% in the 3rd quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 138,568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,742,000 after acquiring an additional 31,897 shares during the last quarter. 81.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Universal from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered Universal from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Universal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Universal Price Performance

Universal stock opened at $53.41 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $54.34 and a 200-day moving average of $54.00. Universal Corporation has a 52-week low of $49.96 and a 52-week high of $67.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 2.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.76, a PEG ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.66.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.92 by ($0.57). Universal had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 6.49%. The business had revenue of $861.29 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $927.20 million.

Universal Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 4th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be given a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 15th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.1%. Universal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 96.76%.

Universal Company Profile

Universal Corporation (NYSE: UVV) is a global agribusiness company primarily engaged in the procurement, processing and sale of leaf tobacco. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company sources cured leaf tobacco from key growing regions in North and South America, Africa and Asia. Universal serves major multinational tobacco manufacturers by providing a full range of services including inventory management, quality control and logistics support to ensure a consistent and reliable supply of tobacco leaf.

In addition to its core leaf tobacco operations, Universal offers integrated supply-chain services that encompass warehousing, distribution and ingredient sourcing for smokeless and novel tobacco products.