Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) Shares Purchased by LPL Financial LLC

LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV - Free Report) by 36.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 808,204 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 217,527 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC's holdings in Ambev were worth $1,495,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Ambev by 39.9% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 18,519,980 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,892,000 after acquiring an additional 5,283,746 shares in the last quarter. Private Management Group Inc. increased its holdings in Ambev by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 14,512,234 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,848,000 after acquiring an additional 1,083,882 shares in the last quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP increased its holdings in Ambev by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 13,063,556 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,168,000 after acquiring an additional 552,220 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Ambev by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,425,374 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,438,000 after acquiring an additional 878,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CORDA Investment Management LLC. purchased a new position in Ambev during the 4th quarter valued at about $11,987,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 8.13% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ABEV shares. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Ambev from $2.50 to $2.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America downgraded Ambev from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com began coverage on Ambev in a report on Wednesday. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. UBS Group downgraded Ambev from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Ambev in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ambev presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $2.45.

Ambev Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of ABEV stock traded up $0.02 on Wednesday, reaching $2.45. 4,676,498 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 35,345,563. The stock has a market cap of $38.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.80 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $2.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $2.12. Ambev S.A. has a 1-year low of $1.76 and a 1-year high of $2.56.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $4.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.42 billion. Ambev had a return on equity of 16.12% and a net margin of 17.02%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ambev S.A. will post 0.18 EPS for the current year.

Ambev Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were issued a dividend of $0.0221 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Ambev's payout ratio is 52.94%.

About Ambev

Ambev SA, through its subsidiaries, engages in the production, distribution, and sale of beer, draft beer, carbonated soft drinks, malt and food, other alcoholic beverages, and non-alcoholic and non-carbonated products in Brazil, Central America and Caribbean, Latin America South, and Canada. It offers beer primarily under the Skol, Brahma, Antarctica, Brahva, Budweiser, Bud Light, Beck, Leffe, Hoegaarden, Balboa ICE, Balboa, Atlas Golden Light, Atlas, Bucanero, Cristal, Mayabe, Presidente, Presidente Light, Brahma Light, Bohemia, The One, Corona, Modelo Especial, Stella Artois, Quilmes Clásica, Paceña, Taquiña, Huari, Becker, Cusqueña, Michelob Ultra, Busch, Pilsen, Ouro Fino, Bud 66, Banks, Deputy, Patricia, Labatt Blue, Alexander Keith's, and Kokanee brands.