1,879 Shares in The Marzetti Company $MZTI Bought by Magnetar Financial LLC

Key Points

• Magnetar Financial LLC has acquired a new stake in The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI), purchasing 1,879 shares valued at approximately $329,000.
• Marzetti has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.95 per share, set to be paid on September 30th, with an annualized dividend yield of 2.1%.
• For the most recent quarter, Marzetti reported earnings per share of $1.33, surpassing analysts' expectations, with a revenue increase of 5.0% year over year.

Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,879 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $329,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its holdings in Marzetti by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,259 shares of the company's stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Marzetti by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,323 shares of the company's stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Marzetti by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,534 shares of the company's stock worth $618,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Marzetti by 2.2% in the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 4,632 shares of the company's stock valued at $811,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Securian Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Marzetti by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,497 shares of the company's stock valued at $262,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 66.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MZTI. Benchmark lifted their price objective on Marzetti from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Marzetti in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $206.00.

Marzetti Price Performance

Marzetti stock traded up $0.55 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $184.46. The company had a trading volume of 143,600 shares, compared to its average volume of 141,836. The Marzetti Company has a 12-month low of $156.14 and a 12-month high of $202.63. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $176.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $176.28. The company has a market capitalization of $5.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.39 and a beta of 0.43.

Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $475.43 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $455.26 million. Marzetti had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 18.87%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.34 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that The Marzetti Company will post 6.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marzetti Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Marzetti's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.60%.

Marzetti Profile

Lancaster Colony Corporation engages in the manufacturing and marketing of specialty food products for the retail and foodservice channels in the United States. It operates in two segments, Retail and Foodservice. The company offers frozen garlic bread under the New York BRAND Bakery; frozen Parkerhouse style yeast and dinner rolls under the Sister Schubert's brand; salad dressings under the Marzetti, Simply Dressed, Cardini's, and Girard's brands; vegetable and fruit dips under the Marzetti brand; croutons and salad toppings under the New York BRAND Bakery, Chatham Village, and Marzetti brands; and frozen pasta under the Marzetti Frozen Pasta brand.