Man Group plc Invests $3.08 Million in The Marzetti Company $MZTI

Key Points

• Man Group acquired 26,933 Marzetti shares worth approximately $3.08 million, giving it a 0.10% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 66.44% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: Marzetti has a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average price target of $135, while recent targets ranged from $130 to $140.
• Marzetti reported quarterly earnings of $1.46 per share on $465.03 million in revenue and declared a $1.00 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 3.6% yield.

Man Group plc acquired a new stake in The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 26,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,075,000. Man Group plc owned about 0.10% of Marzetti at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MZTI. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marzetti during the second quarter valued at $313,083,000. Vanguard Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Marzetti in the 4th quarter valued at about $367,969,000. State Street Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Marzetti in the fourth quarter valued at about $160,722,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Marzetti by 18.2% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 803,707 shares of the company's stock valued at $111,177,000 after buying an additional 123,875 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Marzetti during the fourth quarter worth about $103,681,000. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Marzetti

In other news, insider Luis Viso sold 1,221 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.31, for a total value of $133,467.51. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 1,924 shares of the company's stock, valued at $210,312.44. This represents a 38.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 29.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

• Lancaster Colony Corporation NASDAQ: LANC Is About To Raise The Dividend

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of Marzetti from $168.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $140.00 price target on shares of Marzetti in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Marzetti in a report on Monday, August 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $135.00.

Marzetti Stock Performance

Shares of MZTI stock opened at $112.65 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $112.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $126.19. The Marzetti Company has a 12 month low of $104.28 and a 12 month high of $186.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.07 billion, a PE ratio of 16.16 and a beta of 0.32.

Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 25th. The company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter. Marzetti had a net margin of 9.93% and a return on equity of 18.22%. The firm had revenue of $465.03 million for the quarter.

Marzetti Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. Marzetti's payout ratio is currently 57.39%.

About Marzetti

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.

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