Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV) Stock Position Boosted by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Universal Co. (NYSE:UVV) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,655 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,090 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned about 0.17% of Universal worth $2,340,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in UVV. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal by 828.9% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 771 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 688 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Universal during the 4th quarter valued at $1,329,000. Martingale Asset Management L P raised its stake in shares of Universal by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 29,599 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,623,000 after buying an additional 1,260 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Universal by 25.3% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 995,262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,580,000 after buying an additional 201,185 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in Universal by 148.5% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 62,145 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,405,000 after buying an additional 37,141 shares in the last quarter. 81.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Universal Price Performance

Shares of Universal stock opened at $58.18 on Thursday. Universal Co. has a 52 week low of $45.19 and a 52 week high of $59.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.60, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market cap of $1.44 billion, a PE ratio of 11.97 and a beta of 0.74. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $54.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $53.66.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $937.19 million during the quarter. Universal had a net margin of 4.31% and a return on equity of 8.92%.

Universal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.57%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. Universal’s payout ratio is 66.67%.

Universal Profile

Universal Corporation processes and supplies leaf tobacco and plant-based ingredients worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Tobacco Operations; and Ingredients Operations. It is involved in the procuring, financing, processing, packing, storing, and shipping leaf tobacco for sale to manufacturers of consumer tobacco products.