Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Grows Position in Utz Brands, Inc. $UTZ

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors increased its Utz Brands stake by 21.6% in the first quarter, adding 355,460 shares to own 1.998 million shares valued at $15.8 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 95.97% of the company.
• Utz Brands reported quarterly EPS of $0.19, slightly beating estimates of $0.18, while revenue rose 1.4% year over year to $371.8 million but came in below expectations.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with the stock carrying a consensus “Hold” rating and a $13.39 target price. Shares opened at $14.15, near their 52-week high, and the company maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.063 per share.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ - Free Report) by 21.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,998,089 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 355,460 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 1.39% of Utz Brands worth $15,824,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. NewEdge Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Utz Brands in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Utz Brands by 431.5% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 3,343 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 2,714 shares during 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 valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 2,362 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its position in Utz Brands by 76.1% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 3,756 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,623 shares during the period. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd raised its position in Utz Brands by 134.0% in the fourth quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 6,125 shares of the company's stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 3,507 shares during the period. 95.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Utz Brands Stock Down 0.0%

Utz Brands stock opened at $14.15 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.04 billion, a PE ratio of -42.89 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The stock's fifty day moving average is $9.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $8.75. Utz Brands, Inc. has a 1-year low of $6.78 and a 1-year high of $14.19.

Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.01. Utz Brands had a positive return on equity of 8.92% and a negative net margin of 2.00%.The business had revenue of $371.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $374.18 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.17 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Utz Brands, Inc. will post 0.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Utz Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.063 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 22nd. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. Utz Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -250.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on UTZ shares. Zacks Research raised Utz Brands from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Utz Brands from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $14.25 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $14.25 target price on shares of Utz Brands in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Utz Brands from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $14.25 price target (up from $10.00) on shares of Utz Brands in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $13.39.

Utz Brands Profile

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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