Ambev S.A. $ABEV Shares Sold by Morningstar Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• Morningstar Investment Management cut its Ambev stake by 22.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 467,703 shares and leaving it with 1,572,660 shares worth about $3.88 million.
• Ambev reported Q earnings of $0.05 per share, matching analyst expectations, though revenue of $4.32 billion came in slightly below forecasts. The company also disclosed a quarterly dividend of $0.0092 per share, implying a 1.1% yield.
• Wall Street sentiment remains cautious: the stock has a consensus “Reduce” rating and average target price of $3.09, even after mixed analyst moves and a recent insider sale by Eduardo Cavalcanti De Lacerda.

Morningstar Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV - Free Report) by 22.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,572,660 shares of the company's stock after selling 467,703 shares during the period. Morningstar Investment Management LLC's holdings in Ambev were worth $3,884,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Perigon Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ambev by 34.3% during the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,411 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 3,936 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its position in shares of Ambev by 3.4% during the third quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 140,579 shares of the company's stock worth $313,000 after purchasing an additional 4,557 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Ambev by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 240,887 shares of the company's stock worth $595,000 after purchasing an additional 4,700 shares in the last quarter. West Family Investments Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ambev by 10.4% during the third quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 51,819 shares of the company's stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 4,891 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in shares of Ambev by 4.8% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 111,999 shares of the company's stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 5,091 shares in the last quarter. 8.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ambev Stock Performance

Shares of ABEV opened at $3.20 on Monday. The business's 50 day moving average is $3.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $2.81. Ambev S.A. has a 52-week low of $2.10 and a 52-week high of $3.45. The firm has a market cap of $50.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.82, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $4.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. Analysts forecast that Ambev S.A. will post 0.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ambev Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 24th will be given a dividend of $0.0092 per share. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 24th. Ambev's dividend payout ratio is currently 173.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABEV has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ambev from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group upped their target price on Ambev from $2.65 to $2.90 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Barclays upped their target price on Ambev from $3.00 to $3.50 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Ambev from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ambev has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $3.09.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider De Lacerda Eduardo Cavalcanti sold 152,386 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.85, for a total transaction of $434,300.10. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 223,340 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $636,519. This represents a 40.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Ambev 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.

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