Universal (NYSE:UVV) Cut to “Strong Sell” at Zacks Research

Universal (NYSE:UVV) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Wall Street Zen cut Universal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings cut Universal from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One equities research 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 stock has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Universal Trading Down 0.3%

Universal stock opened at $52.93 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $53.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $53.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 3.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Universal has a 12 month low of $49.19 and a 12 month high of $61.67. The stock has a market cap of $1.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.03, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($1.54). Universal had a return on equity of 4.43% and a net margin of 1.12%.The company had revenue of $715.24 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $728.20 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Universal will post 4.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Universal

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Universal by 75.2% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Universal by 67.1% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 518 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd raised its stake in shares of Universal by 1,634.4% in the 4th quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 555 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 523 shares in the last quarter. Ankerstar Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Universal during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Universal by 265.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 719 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 522 shares in the last quarter. 81.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Universal

Here are the key news stories impacting Universal this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Universal Corporation will hold a virtual 2026 Annual Meeting of Shareholders on June 18. This is a routine corporate update with limited immediate impact on the stock. Universal Display Corporation to Hold Virtual 2026 Annual Meeting of Shareholders
• Negative Sentiment: Sidoti lowered Universal’s FY2027 EPS estimate to $4.30 from $4.40, signaling less optimistic profit expectations for the tobacco company. Universal Corporation analyst estimate updates
• Negative Sentiment: The firm also cut FY2028 EPS to $4.38 from $4.61 and trimmed several quarterly forecasts, including Q1 2027, Q2 2027, Q4 2027, and Q2 2028, reinforcing concerns about near-term earnings momentum. Universal Corporation analyst estimate updates
• Negative Sentiment: Seeking Alpha published a downgrade to Hold, citing persistent tobacco oversupply, margin compression, and questions about dividend safety due to tight free cash flow coverage. Universal Corp: The Three Reasons Why I Am Downgrading To Hold

About Universal

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.