Universal (UVV) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $1.34B
• Dividend Yield: 6.15%
• Average Volume (3M): 204.94K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 15.9
• Beta (1Y): 0.22
• Revenue Growth: 3.01%
• EPS Growth: -7.14%
• Country: US
• Employees: 10,800
• Sector: Consumer Defensive
• Sector Strength: 42
• Industry: Tobacco
• EPS (TTM): 1.35
• Shares Outstanding: 24,923,496
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 188,148
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 204,943
• PEG Ratio: -0.71
• Price to Book (P/B): 0.96
• Price to Sales (P/S): 0.47
• P/FCF Ratio: 5.29
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 1.76
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 0.81
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 4.46
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 8.33
• 1Y Price Target: N/A
• Price Target Upside: N/A
• Rating Consensus: N/A
• Number of Analyst Covering: 0
• EPS Forecast (FY): 4.7
• Revenue Forecast (FY): $3.01B

• Rating: 56 Neutral
• Price Target: $53.00 ▼(-2.32% Downside)
• Action: Reiterated Date: 02/10/26
• Date: Action: Reiterated 02/10/26

The score is primarily held back by weaker financial performance (sharp TTM revenue drop, rising leverage, and volatile/declining free cash flow). Technicals also reflect a weak trend with the stock below major moving averages. Offsetting factors include an attractive dividend yield and a moderate P/E, while the latest earnings call was balanced—strategic progress and liquidity improvements, but continued near-term earnings and margin pressure.

Positive Factors

Market position — tobacco supply

Universal's leading role as a global tobacco supplier and continued firm customer demand underpin durable revenue baselines. Expanded third-party processing and long regional sourcing relationships support resilience versus cyclical shocks, preserving bargaining power and shipment stability over the medium term.

Ingredients growth and product pipeline

Revenue gains from ingredients and new/value-added products show commercialization of R&D and cross-sell potential. Combined with recent Lancaster facility capacity, this supports scalable sales, diversification away from raw leaf cycles and a pathway to absorb fixed costs and improve mid-term margin profile.

Stronger liquidity and credit capacity

An expanded credit facility and ~ $917M available liquidity materially reduce near-term refinancing risk and fund working capital, capex or acquisitions. This structural improvement gives management flexibility to execute strategic investments and absorb inventory/seasonal swings without immediate balance-sheet strain.

Negative Factors

Sustained revenue decline

A marked TTM revenue decline and continuing quarterly drops indicate weakening top-line momentum that erodes operating leverage. Persistent revenue contraction limits reinvestment, stresses fixed-cost absorption, and heightens reliance on cost cuts or portfolio shifts to restore sustainable profit growth over the medium term.

Rising leverage and higher net debt

Materially higher leverage versus prior years reduces financial flexibility and raises interest/covenant sensitivity. Elevated net debt constrains capital allocation choices—limiting M&A optionality, dividends or buybacks—and increases execution risk if revenue or cash flow recovery lags expectations.

Volatile cash generation

Sharp declines and historical swings in free cash flow signal inconsistent conversion of earnings to liquidity. This volatility makes funding capex, inventory write-downs and debt service more uncertain, raising the likelihood management must choose between investment, debt reduction, or shareholder returns during recovery.

Universal Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

Universal Corporation processes and supplies leaf tobacco and plant-based ingredients worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Tobacco Operations and Ingredients Operations. It is involved in the procuring, financing, processing, packing, storing, and shipping leaf tobacco for sale to manufacturers of consumer tobacco products. The company contracts, purchases, processes, and sells flue-cured, burley, and oriental tobaccos that are primarily used in the manufacture of cigarettes; and dark air-cured tobaccos principally used in the manufacture of cigars, natural wrapped cigars and cigarillos, smokeless, and pipe tobacco products. It also provides value-added services, including blending, chemical, and physical testing of tobacco; service cutting for various manufacturers; manufacturing reconstituted leaf tobacco; just-in-time inventory management services; electronic nicotine delivery systems; and smoke testing services for customers. In addition, the company offers testing services for crop protection agents and tobacco constituents in seed, leaf, and finished products, including e-cigarette liquids and vapors; and analytical services that include chemical compound testing in finished tobacco products and mainstream smoke. Further, it provides a various value-added manufacturing processes to produce specialty vegetable and fruit-based ingredients, as well as botanical extracts and flavorings for human and pet food markets; and recycles waste materials from tobacco production. The company was founded in 1886 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia.

How the Company Makes Money

Universal Corporation generates revenue primarily through the sale of tobacco leaf, which is its core product. The company sources tobacco from various regions, processes it, and then sells it to major tobacco manufacturers around the world. Key revenue streams include the sale of processed tobacco, as well as contract farming services that allow them to cultivate and manage tobacco crops for clients. Additionally, Universal benefits from long-term relationships with large tobacco companies, which provide a stable demand for their products. The company also engages in risk management and commodity trading related to tobacco, which can contribute to its earnings. Overall, its diverse operations within the tobacco supply chain help mitigate risks and enhance profitability.

Universal Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Overall fundamentals are mixed: steady but thin profitability (TTM gross margin ~18.9%, net margin ~3.7%) and a meaningful TTM revenue decline (~25%). Leverage has risen (debt-to-equity ~0.81) and cash flows are inconsistent with sharply lower TTM free cash flow (~$76M, ~-58%), despite remaining positive.

Income Statement

Profitability is steady but not strong: TTM (Trailing-Twelve-Months) gross margin is ~18.9% and net margin is ~3.7%, with EBITDA margin holding around ~10% across periods. The key weakness is growth—TTM (Trailing-Twelve-Months) revenue fell ~25% versus the prior period after modest growth in recent annual reports, and net income has not shown a clear upward trajectory (roughly $87M–$124M range historically, ~$119M TTM). Overall: stable operating profile, but pressured top-line and thin net profitability weigh on the score.

Balance Sheet

Leverage is meaningful and has trended higher: total debt is ~${1.11}B TTM (Trailing-Twelve-Months) and debt-to-equity is ~0.81 (up from ~0.49 in 2021), reducing balance-sheet flexibility. Equity is still sizable (~$1.48B TTM), helping support the capital structure, and returns on equity are moderate (mid-to-high single digits, ~7.6% TTM). Overall: adequate capitalization, but rising leverage is the main risk.

Cash Flow

Cash generation is volatile. While TTM (Trailing-Twelve-Months) free cash flow remains positive (~$76M), it declined sharply (down ~58%), and operating cash flow is relatively light (~$133M TTM). The record also includes periods of negative operating cash flow and negative free cash flow (notably 2023 and 2024), which raises quality and consistency concerns despite generally reasonable conversion of earnings into free cash flow when positive (free cash flow at ~0.78x net income TTM). Overall: positive recently, but uneven and weakening.

Breakdown	TTM	Mar 2025	Mar 2024	Mar 2023	Mar 2022	Mar 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue	2.91B	2.95B	2.75B	2.57B	2.10B	1.98B
Gross Profit	529.07M	548.88M	536.10M	458.29M	408.93M	386.00M
EBITDA	283.52M	301.05M	288.68M	248.57M	222.53M	195.41M
Net Income	85.25M	95.05M	119.60M	124.05M	86.58M	87.41M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	3.02B	2.99B	2.94B	2.64B	2.59B	2.34B
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	85.23M	260.12M	55.59M	64.69M	81.65M	197.22M
Total Debt	1.11B	1.10B	1.06B	849.32M	741.11M	647.09M
Total Liabilities	1.49B	1.49B	1.46B	1.20B	1.20B	993.50M
Stockholders Equity	1.48B	1.46B	1.44B	1.40B	1.34B	1.31B
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	52.69M	264.37M	-140.65M	-65.23M	-8.32M	154.26M
Operating Cash Flow	100.71M	326.97M	-74.63M	-10.56M	44.88M	220.41M
Investing Cash Flow	-39.67M	-58.82M	-60.00M	-50.35M	-142.66M	-217.27M
Financing Cash Flow	-191.80M	-63.23M	125.67M	38.95M	-16.76M	91.39M

Universal Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 54.26
• 50DMA: Negative
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Negative
• MACD: Positive
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For UVV, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 54.26 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 54.61, above the 50-day MA of 54.07, and above the 200-day MA of 53.85, indicating a bearish trend. The MACD of -0.27 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 47.34 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 73.43 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for UVV.

Universal Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
RLX	76 Outperform	$2.95B	27.91	4.71%	0.35%	51.49%	21.43%
PM	75 Outperform	$290.83B	25.72	―	3.59%	7.72%	-12.45%
BTI	69 Neutral	$135.25B	13.54	15.94%	5.22%	0.48%	―
TPB	69 Neutral	$2.61B	48.23	22.54%	0.28%	6.71%	8.16%
MO	66 Neutral	$115.43B	16.77	―	7.02%	-0.96%	-11.42%
Sector *	62 Neutral	$20.33B	14.63	-3.31%	3.23%	1.93%	-12.26%
UVV	56 Neutral	$1.34B	15.87	5.81%	6.15%	3.01%	-7.14%

Universal Corporate Events

Universal Names New CFO Amid Strategic Financial Transition

Universal Corporation reported on February 9, 2026, that it delivered solid consolidated performance for the nine months and quarter ended December 31, 2025, supported by strong tobacco operations and firm customer demand, even as industry conditions shift toward oversupply. The company highlighted softer demand and tariff headwinds in its Universal Ingredients business, margin pressure from higher fixed costs tied to recent investments, and noted improved liquidity and financial flexibility from a December 2025 refinancing and upsizing of its credit facility, alongside ongoing progress on sustainability initiatives such as increased renewable electricity use and efforts to strengthen its global supply chain.

On February 3, 2026, Universal’s board elected Steven S. Diel as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, effective April 1, 2026, succeeding retiring CFO Johan C. Kroner, who will remain as Senior Vice President until his retirement on July 1, 2026, to facilitate a smooth transition. Diel, previously CFO of the company’s Ingredients segment and earlier a business development executive at Universal, brings prior CFO and financial planning roles at other companies, and the company emphasized that his appointment involves no related-party arrangements or disclosed conflicts of interest, with any compensation changes to be determined later by the compensation committee.

The most recent analyst rating on (UVV) stock is a Buy with a $61.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Universal stock, see the UVV Stock Forecast page.

Universal CFO succession plan shifts after withdrawn hire

On January 20, 2026, Universal Corporation’s board elected Anubhav Mittal as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, with the appointment set to be effective February 17, 2026, but the company withdrew its offer of employment on January 28, 2026. As a result, Johan C. Kroner will remain in the Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer role while the company, having recently conducted an executive search, expects to elect a new successor in the near term, signaling continued transition in its top finance leadership.

The most recent analyst rating on (UVV) stock is a Buy with a $61.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Universal stock, see the UVV Stock Forecast page.

Universal appoints new chief financial officer and leader

On January 21, 2026, Universal Corporation announced the appointment of Anubhav Mittal as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, effective February 17, 2026, marking the conclusion of its previously disclosed CFO search and setting up a planned leadership transition as current CFO Johan C. Kroner steps down on that date and remains a Senior Vice President until his retirement on July 1, 2026. Mittal, a seasoned finance and strategy executive with 20 years of experience at Archer Daniels Midland, Kellogg, Unilever, and Booz & Company, will receive a compensation package that includes a $650,000 base salary, a $500,000 annual target bonus, long-term equity incentives, a one-time restricted stock unit grant of approximately $2 million, and a $600,000 signing bonus subject to clawback, underscoring Universal’s intent to strengthen its global finance leadership and support its growth and portfolio strategies across its tobacco and agriproducts businesses.

The most recent analyst rating on (UVV) stock is a Hold with a $55.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Universal stock, see the UVV Stock Forecast page.

Universal Secures New Credit Agreement with Banks

On December 9, 2025, Universal Corporation entered into a new unsecured Credit Agreement with several banks, including JPMorgan Chase Bank and Truist Bank, to secure a five-year term loan A-1 facility of $275 million, a seven-year term loan A-2 facility of $345 million, and a five-year revolving loan facility of $780 million. This agreement, which replaces the company’s previous credit agreement, is intended to support general corporate purposes such as acquisitions, investments, and working capital. The Credit Agreement includes various financial covenants and conditions, such as maintaining a maximum total net leverage ratio and a minimum consolidated tangible net worth, and allows for prepayment without penalties. The termination of the existing credit agreement was completed on December 9, 2025, using the new Credit Agreement to repay all outstanding debts.

The most recent analyst rating on (UVV) stock is a Hold with a $58.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Universal stock, see the UVV Stock Forecast page.