16,248 Shares in Universal Corporation $UVV Purchased by SummerHaven Investment Management LLC

SummerHaven Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 16,248 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $679,000. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Universal at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in UVV. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Universal during the 1st quarter worth approximately $4,220,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Universal by 35.5% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 353,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,638,000 after purchasing an additional 92,617 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of Universal during the first quarter worth $585,000. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new position in Universal during the first quarter worth about $508,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in shares of Universal by 77.3% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 28,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,486,000 after purchasing an additional 12,288 shares in the last quarter. 81.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Universal

In other news, Director Lennart Freeman sold 1,782 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.82, for a total value of $88,779.24. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 16,935 shares in the company, valued at $843,701.70. This represents a 9.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UVV has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered Universal from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised Universal from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Universal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Universal Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:UVV opened at $40.60 on Friday. Universal Corporation has a 1 year low of $40.14 and a 1 year high of $59.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.79 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.57 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $44.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $49.86.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.18) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.43). Universal had a net margin of 0.67% and a return on equity of 3.50%. The company had revenue of $523.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $587.00 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Universal Corporation will post 3.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.2%. Universal’s payout ratio is currently 431.17%.

Universal Company Profile

Universal Corporation (NYSE: UVV) is a global leaf tobacco supplier and processor. Through its operating companies, the company purchases tobacco from growers, processes and blends leaf, and supplies tobacco products and related materials to manufacturers of cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco and other tobacco products. Its services include crop contracting, agricultural support, curing, processing, storage, packaging and logistics.

Founded in 1918 and headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, Universal has developed an international network of tobacco sourcing, processing and distribution operations.