Universal (NYSE:UVV) Shares Gap Down After Insider Selling

Shares of Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The stock had previously closed at $46.22, but opened at $44.47. Universal shares last traded at $45.4350, with a volume of 78,475 shares.

Specifically, Director Lennart R. Freeman sold 1,782 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.82, for a total transaction of $88,779.24. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 16,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $843,701.70. This represents a 9.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on UVV shares. Zacks Research upgraded Universal from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Universal from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold”.

Universal News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Universal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Sidoti raised its estimates for Universal’s third-quarter and fourth-quarter fiscal 2028 EPS to $1.87 and $1.16, respectively, from $1.77 and $1.12. The increases suggest some potential improvement later in the forecast period.
• Positive Sentiment: Universal continues to offer an attractive quarterly dividend of $0.83, or $3.32 annually, implying a yield of approximately 7.2%. However, the high payout ratio makes the sustainability of that income an important consideration for investors.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains cautious: Zacks upgraded Universal from “strong sell” to “hold,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold.”
• Negative Sentiment: Universal reported a fiscal first-quarter loss of $0.18 per share, missing the consensus expectation for $0.25 of earnings. Revenue was $523.8 million versus the $587.0 million estimate, raising concerns about near-term demand and operating performance. Universal earnings and stock report
• Negative Sentiment: Sidoti reduced its fiscal 2027 EPS forecast to $3.18 from $4.30 and its fiscal 2028 forecast to $3.95 from $4.38. It also sharply lowered estimates for fiscal 2027 second-quarter EPS and fiscal 2028 first-quarter EPS, indicating weaker expected profitability despite some later-period increases.
• Negative Sentiment: Director Lennart R. Freeman sold 1,782 shares for approximately $88,800, cutting his direct ownership by 9.5%. While the sale may be routine, it adds a modest negative signal following the disappointing results. SEC Form 4 insider transaction

Universal Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 2.57. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $52.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $53.14.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.18) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.25 by ($0.43). The firm had revenue of $523.78 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $587.00 million. Universal had a net margin of 0.67% and a return on equity of 3.50%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Universal Corporation will post 4.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 12th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.3%. Universal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 431.17%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Universal by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,983,924 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,402,000 after purchasing an additional 35,513 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings 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 worth $80,272,000 after buying an additional 21,763 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Universal by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 853,722 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,034,000 after buying an additional 37,921 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Universal by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 624,381 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,943,000 after buying an additional 5,844 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position in Universal by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 610,525 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,205,000 after buying an additional 31,961 shares during the period. 81.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.