Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) Shares Sold by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) by 63.4% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,746,196 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,021,007 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Flowers Foods were worth $47,863,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Flowers Foods during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Flowers Foods in the 1st quarter valued at about $41,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Flowers Foods by 313.8% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,098 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 1,591 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Flowers Foods by 18.8% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Flowers Foods by 14.9% in the 1st quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,347 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,000 after buying an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. 78.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Flowers Foods Stock Up 2.0 %

FLO stock opened at $23.01 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $24.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $25.95. The company has a market cap of $4.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.91, a PEG ratio of 8.16 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. Flowers Foods, Inc. has a 12 month low of $22.47 and a 12 month high of $30.16.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 10th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. Flowers Foods had a net margin of 4.47% and a return on equity of 18.28%. The business’s revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.31 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Flowers Foods, Inc. will post 1.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Flowers Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 31st. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.00%. Flowers Foods’s dividend payout ratio is currently 87.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on FLO shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Flowers Foods from $26.00 to $24.00 in a research note on Monday, May 22nd. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Flowers Foods in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $25.00 price objective on shares of Flowers Foods in a report on Friday, August 11th.

Insider Transactions at Flowers Foods

In related news, insider H Mark Courtney sold 14,272 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.39, for a total transaction of $348,094.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 41,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,011,892.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 11.49% of the company’s stock.

Flowers Foods Company Profile

Flowers Foods, Inc produces and markets packaged bakery food products in the United States. Its principal products include fresh breads, buns, rolls, snack cakes, and tortillas, as well as frozen breads and rolls under the Nature's Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder, Canyon Bakehouse, Mrs. Freshley's, and Tastykake brand names.