Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Ambev (NYSE:ABEV - Free Report) in a report issued on Tuesday. The brokerage issued a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on ABEV. Barclays dropped their price target on Ambev from $2.50 to $2.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America downgraded shares of Ambev from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley downgraded Ambev from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Ambev in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ambev currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $2.45.

Ambev Trading Up 3.2 %

ABEV stock traded up $0.08 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $2.41. 72,208,528 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 27,504,516. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.20. The company has a 50-day moving average of $2.19 and a 200-day moving average of $2.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.89 billion, a PE ratio of 13.36, a P/E/G ratio of 5.80 and a beta of 0.68. Ambev has a 1 year low of $1.76 and a 1 year high of $2.56.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06 by ($0.01). Ambev had a net margin of 17.02% and a return on equity of 16.12%. The firm had revenue of $4.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.42 billion. Analysts predict that Ambev will post 0.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ambev Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.0221 per share. This represents a $0.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. Ambev's dividend payout ratio is 52.94%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Ambev by 35.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 78,604 shares of the company's stock worth $192,000 after acquiring an additional 20,599 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Ambev by 34.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 382,600 shares of the company's stock valued at $934,000 after purchasing an additional 97,150 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ambev by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 54,013 shares of the company's stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 8,350 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Ambev by 298.1% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 802,016 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,957,000 after buying an additional 600,545 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Ambev by 9.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,425,374 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,438,000 after acquiring an additional 878,900 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 8.13% of the company's stock.

Ambev Company Profile

Ambev SA, through its subsidiaries, engages in the production, distribution, and sale of beer, draft beer, carbonated soft drinks, malt and food, other alcoholic beverages, and non-alcoholic and non-carbonated products in Brazil, Central America and Caribbean, Latin America South, and Canada. It offers beer primarily under the Skol, Brahma, Antarctica, Brahva, Budweiser, Bud Light, Beck, Leffe, Hoegaarden, Balboa ICE, Balboa, Atlas Golden Light, Atlas, Bucanero, Cristal, Mayabe, Presidente, Presidente Light, Brahma Light, Bohemia, The One, Corona, Modelo Especial, Stella Artois, Quilmes Clásica, Paceña, Taquiña, Huari, Becker, Cusqueña, Michelob Ultra, Busch, Pilsen, Ouro Fino, Bud 66, Banks, Deputy, Patricia, Labatt Blue, Alexander Keith's, and Kokanee brands.