Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Decreases Position in Domino's Pizza Inc (NASDAQ:DPZ)

Key Points

• Westwood Holdings Group Inc. reduced its stake in Domino's Pizza Inc by 7.9%, selling 21,556 shares and maintaining a total of 252,425 shares, which represent 0.9% of its holdings.
• The company recently missed analysts' earnings expectations for the quarter, reporting $3.81 earnings per share compared to the anticipated $3.93, despite a 4.3% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• A quarterly dividend of $1.74 will be paid on September 30th, with a 1.5% annual yield, reflecting a dividend payout ratio of 40.42%.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Domino's Pizza Inc (NASDAQ:DPZ - Free Report) by 7.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 252,425 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 21,556 shares during the period. Domino's Pizza comprises approximately 0.9% of Westwood Holdings Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned about 0.74% of Domino's Pizza worth $115,977,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Berkshire Hathaway Inc boosted its holdings in Domino's Pizza by 86.5% in the 4th quarter. Berkshire Hathaway Inc now owns 2,382,000 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $999,868,000 after buying an additional 1,104,744 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Domino's Pizza by 53,740.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 260,049 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $119,480,000 after buying an additional 259,566 shares in the last quarter. Bristol Gate Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Domino's Pizza during the 1st quarter valued at about $92,085,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Domino's Pizza by 46.0% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 609,036 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $255,649,000 after purchasing an additional 191,752 shares during the period. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new stake in Domino's Pizza in the 4th quarter worth about $56,647,000. Institutional investors own 94.63% of the company's stock.

Domino's Pizza Stock Performance

Shares of DPZ stock traded down $1.36 on Thursday, reaching $442.42. 645,398 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 785,165. Domino's Pizza Inc has a 1 year low of $396.06 and a 1 year high of $500.55. The company has a market cap of $15.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.09. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $461.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $464.83.

Domino's Pizza (NASDAQ:DPZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The restaurant operator reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.93 by ($0.12). Domino's Pizza had a net margin of 12.49% and a negative return on equity of 15.09%. The business had revenue of $1.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.03 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Domino's Pizza Inc will post 16.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Domino's Pizza Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $1.74 dividend. This represents a $6.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Domino's Pizza's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on DPZ shares. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Domino's Pizza from $510.00 to $514.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on shares of Domino's Pizza from $460.00 to $490.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Domino's Pizza to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Domino's Pizza from $520.00 to $549.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Domino's Pizza from $564.00 to $574.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $489.67.

About Domino's Pizza

Domino's Pizza, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a pizza company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: U.S. Stores, International Franchise, and Supply Chain. It offers pizzas under the Domino's brand name through company-owned and franchised stores.