Merit Financial Group LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Newell Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:NWL)

Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Newell Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:NWL - Free Report) by 608.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 97,947 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 84,129 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Newell Brands were worth $607,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Newell Brands during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Newell Brands during the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Newell Brands by 140.1% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 7,912 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 4,617 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund bought a new position in shares of Newell Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $101,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Newell Brands by 146,542.9% in the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 10,265 shares of the company's stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 10,258 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.50% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Newell Brands from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $9.00 price objective on shares of Newell Brands in a report on Monday, April 28th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Newell Brands from $7.75 to $4.75 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Newell Brands from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $6.00 to $7.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on Newell Brands from $17.00 to $8.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Newell Brands currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $7.53.

Newell Brands Trading Down 3.5%

NASDAQ:NWL traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $5.24. 12,198,804 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,661,531. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.97. Newell Brands Inc. has a one year low of $4.22 and a one year high of $11.78. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $7.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

Newell Brands (NASDAQ:NWL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.07) by $0.06. Newell Brands had a positive return on equity of 9.76% and a negative net margin of 2.85%. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Newell Brands Inc. will post 0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Newell Brands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a $0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.34%. Newell Brands's payout ratio is -47.46%.

About Newell Brands

Newell Brands Inc engages in the design, manufacture, sourcing, and distribution of consumer and commercial products worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Home and Commercial Solutions, Learning and Development, and Outdoor and Recreation. The Commercial Solutions segment provides commercial cleaning and maintenance solution products under the Rubbermaid, Rubbermaid Commercial Products, Mapa, and Spontex brands; closet and garage organization products; hygiene systems and material handling solutions; household products, such as kitchen appliances under the Crockpot, Mr.