Copeland Capital Management LLC Acquires 318,763 Shares of Utz Brands, Inc. $UTZ

Key Points

• Copeland Capital Management increased its stake in Utz Brands by 10.2%, buying 318,763 shares to own 3,449,862 shares (2.41% of the company) valued at about $35.8 million at quarter-end, and institutional investors now hold 95.97% of the stock.
• Utz shares trade near $7.56 with a $1.09 billion market cap, a very high trailing P/E (~757) and thin margins; analysts' consensus is a "Hold" with an average target of $12.06 and company FY2026 EPS guidance of $0.771–0.795.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.063 (annualized $0.25, yield ~3.3%) despite an unusually high reported payout ratio of 2,500%.

Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ - Free Report) by 10.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,449,862 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 318,763 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC owned 2.41% of Utz Brands worth $35,810,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Utz Brands in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd increased its holdings in Utz Brands by 194.8% in the 3rd quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 2,618 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,730 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Utz Brands by 118.5% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,356 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 2,362 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in Utz Brands by 76.1% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 3,756 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,623 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in Utz Brands by 505.6% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 10,900 shares of the company's stock worth $137,000 after purchasing an additional 9,100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.97% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UTZ has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho set a $14.00 target price on Utz Brands in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Utz Brands in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Zacks Research raised Utz Brands from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. Bank of America decreased their price target on Utz Brands from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Utz Brands from $15.00 to $13.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Utz Brands presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $12.06.

Utz Brands Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE UTZ opened at $7.56 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.72. Utz Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $7.11 and a one year high of $14.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 757.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.26. The business had revenue of $342.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $346.99 million. Utz Brands had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 0.06%.The firm's revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.22 earnings per share. Utz Brands has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.771-0.795 EPS. Research analysts expect that Utz Brands, Inc. will post 0.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Utz Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 13th were issued a $0.063 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 13th. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. Utz Brands's dividend payout ratio is presently 2,500.00%.

About Utz Brands

Utz Brands, Inc is a leading U.S. manufacturer and distributor of salty snack foods, offering a wide range of products including potato chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, popcorn and tortilla chips. Headquartered in Hanover, Pennsylvania, the company markets its snacks under several well-known brands and serves grocery, mass merchandise, club, convenience and online retailers throughout the United States.

Founded in 1921 by Bill and Salie Utz as a small country store operation, the business expanded gradually through direct delivery to local customers and sales to regional grocers.

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