State of Wyoming Purchases Shares of 345 The Marzetti Company $MZTI

State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MZTI. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Marzetti by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 21,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,793,000 after purchasing an additional 2,581 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its stake in shares of Marzetti by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,323 shares of the company’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in shares of Marzetti by 46.4% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 17,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,010,000 after acquiring an additional 5,514 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marzetti in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,910,000. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marzetti in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $829,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Marzetti Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MZTI opened at $182.42 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.05 and a beta of 0.43. The Marzetti Company has a 1-year low of $156.14 and a 1-year high of $202.63. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $177.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $176.25.

Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 21st. The company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.02. Marzetti had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 18.87%. The firm had revenue of $475.43 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $455.26 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.34 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Marzetti Company will post 6.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marzetti Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Benchmark increased their price objective on shares of Marzetti from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Marzetti in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marzetti presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.00.

Marzetti Profile

Lancaster Colony Corporation engages in the manufacturing and marketing of specialty food products for the retail and foodservice channels in the United States. It operates in two segments, Retail and Foodservice. The company offers frozen garlic bread under the New York BRAND Bakery; frozen Parkerhouse style yeast and dinner rolls under the Sister Schubert's brand; salad dressings under the Marzetti, Simply Dressed, Cardini's, and Girard's brands; vegetable and fruit dips under the Marzetti brand; croutons and salad toppings under the New York BRAND Bakery, Chatham Village, and Marzetti brands; and frozen pasta under the Marzetti Frozen Pasta brand.