Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) Price Target Lowered to $160.00 at Stephens

Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) had its target price reduced by Stephens from $180.00 to $160.00 in a research note published on Monday, Marketbeat.com reports. Stephens currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on MZTI. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Marzetti in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered Marzetti from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their price target on Marzetti from $184.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $176.00.

Marzetti Trading Up 0.1%

Marzetti stock opened at $127.60 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a PE ratio of 19.54 and a beta of 0.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $147.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $159.52. Marzetti has a 52 week low of $124.25 and a 52 week high of $193.25.

Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $509.77 million for the quarter. Marzetti had a return on equity of 18.55% and a net margin of 9.25%.Marzetti’s revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Marzetti Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th were paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.26%.

Institutional Trading of Marzetti

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new stake in Marzetti in the 4th quarter worth about $1,118,569,000. Vanguard Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Marzetti in the 4th quarter worth about $367,969,000. State Street Corp acquired a new stake in Marzetti in the 4th quarter worth about $160,722,000. First Trust Advisors LP acquired a new stake in Marzetti in the 4th quarter worth about $111,778,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Marzetti in the 4th quarter worth about $103,681,000. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Marzetti

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.