Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC Increases Position in Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ)

Key Points

• Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Mondelez International by 17.3%, acquiring an additional 28,396 shares to reach a total of 192,476 shares valued at approximately $13.06 million.
• Research analysts have raised their price targets for Mondelez International, with notable increases from $79.00 to $88.00 by Sanford C. Bernstein, indicating a strong market outlook.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend increase to $0.50 per share, with a dividend yield of 3.3%, up from the previous dividend of $0.47.

Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ - Free Report) by 17.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 192,476 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 28,396 shares during the period. Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC's holdings in Mondelez International were worth $13,059,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mondelez International in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Goodman Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mondelez International during the first quarter worth about $26,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Mondelez International by 376.1% during the first quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 438 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 346 shares during the period. North Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Mondelez International during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mondelez International during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. 78.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on shares of Mondelez International from $79.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Mondelez International from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Mondelez International from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Mondelez International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $66.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Mondelez International from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Friday, June 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $71.95.

Mondelez International Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ MDLZ opened at $61.46 on Friday. Mondelez International, Inc. has a 12-month low of $53.95 and a 12-month high of $76.06. The company has a market capitalization of $79.53 billion, a PE ratio of 22.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.70 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The firm's 50-day moving average is $66.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.53.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.05. Mondelez International had a net margin of 9.84% and a return on equity of 15.35%. The company had revenue of $8.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.86 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Mondelez International, Inc. will post 2.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mondelez International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is a boost from Mondelez International's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. Mondelez International's payout ratio is currently 68.86%.

Mondelez International Company Profile

Mondelez International, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and sells snack food and beverage products in the Latin America, North America, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. It provides biscuits and baked snacks, including cookies, crackers, salted snacks, snack bars, and cakes and pastries; chocolates; and gums and candies, as well as various cheese and grocery, and powdered beverage products.

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