Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. Makes New $294,000 Investment in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 13,060 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $294,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of FLO. Mastrapasqua Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Flowers Foods by 5.1% during the third quarter. Mastrapasqua Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $217,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the period. Gladius Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Flowers Foods by 46.4% during the third quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 488 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Flowers Foods by 5.9% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 12,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $277,000 after buying an additional 696 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Flowers Foods by 1.4% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 57,303 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,271,000 after buying an additional 780 shares during the period. Finally, AM Investment Strategies LLC increased its stake in shares of Flowers Foods by 7.4% during the third quarter. AM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 11,706 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,000 after buying an additional 805 shares during the period. 75.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Flowers Foods Stock Performance

Shares of Flowers Foods stock opened at $24.62 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.45, a P/E/G ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.39. Flowers Foods, Inc. has a 52 week low of $19.64 and a 52 week high of $29.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $23.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.42.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.20. The company had revenue of $1.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.13 billion. Flowers Foods had a net margin of 2.42% and a return on equity of 18.15%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.23 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Flowers Foods, Inc. will post 1.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Flowers Foods Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Flowers Foods’s payout ratio is currently 158.62%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Terry S. Thomas sold 36,577 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.11, for a total value of $845,294.47. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 42,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $987,721.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Terry S. Thomas sold 36,577 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.11, for a total value of $845,294.47. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 42,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $987,721.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Edward J. Jr. Casey acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $23.55 per share, with a total value of $117,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 20,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $478,771.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 11.49% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FLO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of Flowers Foods in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Flowers Foods from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $24.00.

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 items, bagels, English muffins, and tortillas, as well as frozen breads and rolls under the Nature's Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder, Canyon Bakehouse, Mrs.