Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Ambev from a buy to a hold rating, adding to a cautious analyst backdrop for the stock.
• Ambev shares were trading around $3.06, near their 50-day moving average of $3.17, and the stock has ranged between $2.10 and $3.45 over the past 52 weeks.
• The company’s latest quarterly results were in line with EPS expectations at $0.05 per share, though revenue of $4.32 billion came in slightly below estimates.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday.

ABEV has been the topic of several other research reports. Barclays lifted their price target on Ambev from $3.00 to $3.50 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings cut Ambev from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Ambev from $2.65 to $2.90 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ambev presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $3.09.

Ambev Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of ABEV stock opened at $3.06 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $3.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $2.97. Ambev has a fifty-two week low of $2.10 and a fifty-two week high of $3.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.64.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.05. Ambev had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 17.69%.The business had revenue of $4.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Ambev will post 0.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Ambev

In other news, insider Paulo Andre Zagman sold 136,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.41, for a total transaction of $464,612.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 230,535 shares of the company's stock, valued at $786,124.35. This represents a 37.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GQG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Ambev by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 172,969,655 shares of the company's stock valued at $427,235,000 after purchasing an additional 14,468,963 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of Ambev by 291.2% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 45,462,628 shares of the company's stock worth $112,293,000 after purchasing an additional 33,842,540 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Ambev by 9.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 27,505,192 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,288,000 after buying an additional 2,479,310 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ambev by 6.5% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 27,354,300 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,875,000 after buying an additional 1,674,900 shares during the period. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP lifted its position in shares of Ambev by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 22,600,124 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,822,000 after buying an additional 874,657 shares during the last quarter. 8.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Ambev

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.

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