Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) has received an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and six have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $3.0933.

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group upped their target price on Ambev from $2.65 to $2.90 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Ambev from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Ambev from $3.00 to $3.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered Ambev from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th.

Insider Transactions at Ambev

In other Ambev news, insider Paulo Andre Zagman sold 136,250 shares of Ambev stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.41, for a total transaction of $464,612.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 230,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $786,124.35. This trade represents a 37.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ambev

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABEV. Nolet Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ambev during the second quarter worth approximately $42,000. Wynn Capital LLC raised its position in Ambev by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 150,285 shares of the company’s stock valued at $472,000 after purchasing an additional 5,420 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates bought a new position in shares of Ambev in the second quarter valued at about $37,000. Amundi raised its stake in shares of Ambev by 19.0% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 587,232 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,715,000 after acquiring an additional 93,698 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in Ambev by 18.1% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,700,035 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,804,000 after buying an additional 566,949 shares in the last quarter. 8.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ambev Stock Down 1.1%

ABEV stock opened at $3.06 on Friday. Ambev has a twelve month low of $2.10 and a twelve month high of $3.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The company has a market cap of $48.15 billion, a PE ratio of 16.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.64. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $3.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.01.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05. Ambev had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 17.69%.The company had revenue of $4.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ambev will post 0.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Ambev Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 24th will be given a $0.0092 dividend. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 24th. Ambev’s dividend payout ratio is 10.53%.

Ambev Company Profile

Ambev (NYSE: ABEV) is a Brazilian-based beverage company that produces, distributes and markets a broad portfolio of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The company’s core business centers on brewing and selling beer, alongside a range of soft drinks, bottled water, energy drinks and other malt-based beverages. Headquartered in São Paulo, Ambev operates an integrated value chain that covers manufacturing, packaging, logistics and commercial sales to retail, on-premise and institutional customers.

The company traces its origins to the 1999 merger of two historic Brazilian breweries, and later became part of the broader global brewing group through subsequent industry consolidations.