Independence Bank of Kentucky Purchases Shares of 3,637 The Marzetti Company $MZTI

Independence Bank of Kentucky bought a new stake in The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $598,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MZTI. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Marzetti by 16.1% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 221,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,736,000 after purchasing an additional 30,731 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of Marzetti by 3.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 32,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,710,000 after purchasing an additional 1,186 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama acquired a new position in shares of Marzetti in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,014,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marzetti in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,226,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in Marzetti during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,310,000. 66.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marzetti Price Performance

Marzetti stock opened at $141.64 on Monday. The Marzetti Company has a 1-year low of $136.72 and a 1-year high of $193.40. The stock has a market cap of $3.88 billion, a PE ratio of 21.69 and a beta of 0.47. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $155.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $163.44.

Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.23 by ($0.08). Marzetti had a return on equity of 18.55% and a net margin of 9.25%.The business had revenue of $509.77 million for the quarter. The firm’s revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that The Marzetti Company will post 6.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marzetti Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio is 61.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on Marzetti from $184.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Marzetti in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Stephens reduced their target price on shares of Marzetti from $190.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Marzetti from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marzetti currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $182.67.

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.