Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Boosts Stake in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) by 9.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 44,447 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,842 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Flowers Foods were worth $1,001,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB purchased a new position in shares of Flowers Foods in the fourth quarter worth about $5,018,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Flowers Foods in the fourth quarter worth about $737,000. UBS Group AG increased its position in Flowers Foods by 184.8% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 184,170 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,085,000 after purchasing an additional 119,501 shares during the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp Et Al increased its position in Flowers Foods by 93.2% during the third quarter. Tudor Investment Corp Et Al now owns 472,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,486,000 after purchasing an additional 228,063 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP increased its position in Flowers Foods by 113.8% during the third quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 343,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,619,000 after purchasing an additional 182,806 shares during the last quarter. 75.45% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FLO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Flowers Foods from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of Flowers Foods in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $24.00 price objective for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $24.00.

Flowers Foods Price Performance

Shares of FLO opened at $24.62 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $23.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.43. The stock has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a PE ratio of 42.45, a P/E/G ratio of 4.70 and a beta of 0.39. Flowers Foods, Inc. has a 1-year low of $19.64 and a 1-year high of $29.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

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

Flowers Foods Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Flowers Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 158.62%.

Flowers Foods 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.