Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Raises Stake in Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ)

Key Points

• Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its ownership in Mondelez International by 7.8%, purchasing an additional 33,004 shares, bringing their total to 457,092 shares valued at approximately $31 million.
• Analysts have generally positive outlooks for Mondelez, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of around $71.95, following recent upgrades from firms like Evercore ISI and Stifel Nicolaus.
• Mondelez International announced a boost in its quarterly dividend from $0.47 to $0.50 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 3.3% and underscoring its commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ - Free Report) by 7.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 457,092 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 33,004 shares during the quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Mondelez International were worth $31,005,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Mondelez International during the first quarter worth about $59,000. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Mondelez International by 2.2% during the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,335,891 shares of the company's stock worth $90,640,000 after buying an additional 29,245 shares during the period. Eagle Global Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Mondelez International by 5.7% during the first quarter. Eagle Global Advisors LLC now owns 35,831 shares of the company's stock worth $2,431,000 after buying an additional 1,930 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd boosted its stake in Mondelez International by 30.9% during the first quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 44,386 shares of the company's stock worth $3,012,000 after buying an additional 10,490 shares during the period. Finally, Ballast Inc. boosted its stake in Mondelez International by 3.9% during the first quarter. Ballast Inc. now owns 20,008 shares of the company's stock worth $1,358,000 after buying an additional 748 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.32% of the company's stock.

Mondelez International Stock Performance

Shares of Mondelez International stock traded up $0.62 during trading on Friday, reaching $62.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,848,442 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,589,398. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $66.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $65.63. The firm has a market cap of $80.33 billion, a PE ratio of 22.74, a P/E/G ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.46. Mondelez International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $53.95 and a fifty-two week high of $76.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $8.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.82 billion. Mondelez International had a net margin of 9.84% and a return on equity of 15.35%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.86 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Mondelez International, Inc. will post 2.9 EPS for the current year.

Mondelez International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Mondelez International's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Mondelez International's payout ratio is 73.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MDLZ has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Mondelez International from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Mondelez International from $72.00 to $69.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Mondelez International from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Mondelez International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $66.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Mondelez International from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mondelez International has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $71.95.

About Mondelez International

Mondelez International, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and sells snack food and beverage products in the Latin America, North America, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. It provides biscuits and baked snacks, including cookies, crackers, salted snacks, snack bars, and cakes and pastries; chocolates; and gums and candies, as well as various cheese and grocery, and powdered beverage products.