Hsbc Holdings PLC Increases Stock Holdings in Weis Markets, Inc. $WMK

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in Weis Markets, Inc. by 19.6%, owning approximately $2.16 million worth of the company's stock following the addition of 4,602 shares in the first quarter.
• Wall Street analysts downgraded Weis Markets' rating from "strong-buy" to "buy" in early May, signaling a change in market sentiment towards the stock.
• Weis Markets recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.34 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.8% and a dividend payout ratio of 33.83%.

Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in shares of Weis Markets, Inc. (NYSE:WMK - Free Report) by 19.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,076 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,602 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.10% of Weis Markets worth $2,160,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Weis Markets by 10.6% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 536,851 shares of the company's stock worth $41,364,000 after acquiring an additional 51,564 shares during the last quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Weis Markets during the 1st quarter worth $7,255,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Weis Markets during the 1st quarter worth $3,516,000. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Weis Markets during the 1st quarter worth $341,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Weis Markets by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 424,476 shares of the company's stock worth $32,706,000 after acquiring an additional 4,200 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Weis Markets from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th.

Weis Markets Stock Down 2.3%

WMK traded down $1.68 during trading on Monday, hitting $71.59. 164,696 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 139,230. The firm has a market cap of $1.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.81 and a beta of 0.49. Weis Markets, Inc. has a one year low of $62.25 and a one year high of $90.23. The stock's fifty day moving average is $73.76 and its 200 day moving average is $76.31.

Weis Markets (NYSE:WMK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter. Weis Markets had a net margin of 2.23% and a return on equity of 7.60%.

Weis Markets Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 28th were issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 28th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Weis Markets's dividend payout ratio is 33.83%.

About Weis Markets

Weis Markets, Inc engages in the retail sale of food through a chain of supermarkets in Pennsylvania and surrounding states. The company's retail food stores sell groceries, dairy products, frozen foods, meats, seafood, fresh produce, floral, pharmacy services, deli products, prepared foods, bakery products, beer and wine, and fuel; and general merchandise items, such as health and beauty care, and household products.