Vestcor Inc Grows Position in Universal Corporation $UVV

Vestcor Inc grew its stake in Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV) by 282.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 33,264 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 24,571 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Universal were worth $1,755,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Universal by 75.2% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Universal by 265.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 719 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares in the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in Universal during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $63,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Universal by 16.9% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,357 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the period. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in Universal during the third quarter valued at approximately $89,000. Institutional investors own 81.00% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on UVV. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Universal from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Zacks Research cut shares of Universal from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Universal Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of UVV opened at $53.72 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $53.29 and its 200 day moving average is $53.50. The company has a current ratio of 3.49, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Universal Corporation has a 12-month low of $49.19 and a 12-month high of $61.67. The company has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a PE ratio of 41.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 0.59.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The company reported ($0.46) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($1.54). Universal had a return on equity of 4.43% and a net margin of 1.12%.The business had revenue of $715.24 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $728.20 million. Research analysts expect that Universal Corporation will post 4.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, July 13th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This is a positive change from Universal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 13th. Universal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 254.26%.

Key Headlines Impacting Universal

Here are the key news stories impacting Universal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Sidoti raised its Q3 2027 EPS estimate for Universal Corporation, suggesting improved expectations for that period. Universal Corporation analyst note
• Neutral Sentiment: Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square is reportedly set to make about $600 million on its Universal stake, which is drawing investor attention to the stock, though the news is more about ownership gains than operating performance. WSJ article
• Neutral Sentiment: Universal was also the subject of additional analyst estimate changes from Sidoti, with some quarterly forecasts revised up and others revised down, making the overall message mixed. Universal Corporation estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Sidoti cut Universal’s FY2027 and FY2028 EPS estimates, along with several quarterly estimates, which can pressure sentiment by implying slower earnings growth ahead. Universal Corporation estimate cuts
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded Universal from “hold” to “strong sell,” adding a bearish note that may weigh on the stock. Zacks downgrade

Universal 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.