Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) Downgraded by Zacks Research to Strong Sell

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Flowers Foods to “strong sell” from “hold,” contributing to a consensus “Reduce” rating from analysts and an average price target of $7.60.
• Flowers Foods reported quarterly EPS of $0.21, below the $0.22 estimate, while revenue fell 4% year over year to $1.19 billion, missing expectations of $1.23 billion.
• The stock opened at $6.17, near its 12-month low of $5.92 and well below its 12-month high of $13.79; institutional investors own approximately 75.45% of the company.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report released on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on FLO. Stephens decreased their price target on shares of Flowers Foods from $8.00 to $6.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 24th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $7.00 target price on Flowers Foods in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Flowers Foods from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $7.60.

Flowers Foods Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE FLO opened at $6.17 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $1.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.72 and a beta of 0.39. Flowers Foods has a 12 month low of $5.92 and a 12 month high of $13.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The company has a 50-day moving average of $7.27 and a 200-day moving average of $7.88.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.22 by ($0.01). Flowers Foods had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 1.06%.The company had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.28 earnings per share. Flowers Foods's revenue was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Flowers Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.750-0.850 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Flowers Foods will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Flowers Foods

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FLO. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Flowers Foods by 266.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 44,298 shares of the company's stock worth $350,000 after buying an additional 32,203 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Flowers Foods in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $121,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Flowers Foods by 3,225.7% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 60,328 shares of the company's stock valued at $477,000 after acquiring an additional 58,514 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in Flowers Foods by 232.5% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 4,319 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 3,020 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Flowers Foods by 35.6% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 117,012 shares of the company's stock worth $924,000 after purchasing an additional 30,699 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.45% of the company's stock.

About Flowers Foods

Flowers Foods, Inc is a U.S.-based producer and distributor of packaged bakery foods. The company makes breads, buns, rolls, snack cakes, tortillas and related baked goods for retail, foodservice and other commercial customers.

Its portfolio includes nationally recognized brands such as Nature's Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder, Tastykake, Canyon Bakehouse and Mrs. Freshley's. Flowers Foods also supplies baked goods through regional and local brands, serving grocery stores, mass merchants, club retailers, restaurants and foodservice distributors.

Founded in 1919 and headquartered in Thomasville, Georgia, Flowers Foods operates bakeries and distribution facilities across the United States.

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