Sidoti Has Bearish Forecast for Universal FY2026 Earnings

Universal Corporation (NYSE:UVV) – Investment analysts at Sidoti cut their FY2026 earnings per share estimates for Universal in a research note issued on Thursday, February 12th. Sidoti analyst D. Harriman now expects that the company will earn $4.17 per share for the year, down from their prior estimate of $4.74.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Universal from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen cut Universal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Universal from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Universal Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE UVV opened at $53.49 on Monday. Universal has a 1 year low of $49.96 and a 1 year high of $67.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 2.91 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $54.35 and a 200 day moving average of $54.01. The stock has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.66.

Universal (NYSE:UVV) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by ($0.57). The business had revenue of $861.29 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $927.20 million. Universal had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 6.49%.

Universal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 15th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.1%. Universal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 96.76%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Guggenheim Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Universal by 17.4% during the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 33,436 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,764,000 after buying an additional 4,954 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Universal by 27.6% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 38,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,053,000 after acquiring an additional 8,420 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Universal by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 13,062 shares of the company’s stock valued at $689,000 after acquiring an additional 1,576 shares during the last quarter. Rexford Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Universal by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Rexford Capital Inc. now owns 8,671 shares of the company’s stock valued at $457,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Universal by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 28,497 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,504,000 after acquiring an additional 759 shares during the period. 81.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Universal Company 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.