Marshall Wace LLP Raises Stake in National Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ:FIZZ)

Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of National Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ:FIZZ - Free Report) by 1,461.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 100,939 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 94,475 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP owned 0.11% of National Beverage worth $4,307,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FIZZ. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in National Beverage by 389.9% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 41,810 shares of the company's stock worth $1,962,000 after purchasing an additional 33,275 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of National Beverage by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 706,076 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,148,000 after buying an additional 28,688 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in National Beverage by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,547 shares of the company's stock worth $528,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in National Beverage by 43.6% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,594 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its stake in National Beverage by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 39,559 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,688,000 after acquiring an additional 1,624 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 23.95% of the company's stock.

National Beverage Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of National Beverage stock traded up $0.52 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $44.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 226,009 shares, compared to its average volume of 183,107. The firm has a market cap of $4.16 billion, a PE ratio of 22.31 and a beta of 0.94. National Beverage Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $38.25 and a fifty-two week high of $53.48. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $41.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.80.

National Beverage (NASDAQ:FIZZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.03). National Beverage had a net margin of 15.63% and a return on equity of 42.80%. The company had revenue of $267.05 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $282.22 million.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Stanley Michael Sheridan sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.40, for a total transaction of $347,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 62,408 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,708,507.20. This represents a 11.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 74.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, UBS Group reduced their target price on National Beverage from $46.00 to $41.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th.

National Beverage Profile

National Beverage Corp., through its subsidiaries, develops, produces, markets, and sells a portfolio of sparkling waters, juices, energy drinks, and carbonated soft drinks primarily in the United States and Canada. The company's Power+ brand portfolio offers sparkling water products under the LaCroix, LaCroix Cúrate, and LaCroix NiCola; non-carbonated flavored water under the Clear Fruit; energy drink and shots under the Rip It; juice and juice-based products under Everfresh, Everfresh Premier Varietals, and Mr.