Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,310,000 shares, a growth of 31.8% from the March 15th total of 3,270,000 shares. Approximately 0.2% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,190,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,453 shares of the consumer goods maker's stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC raised its stake in Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 5,833 shares of the consumer goods maker's stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA raised its stake in Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA now owns 10,579 shares of the consumer goods maker's stock worth $643,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. Pflug Koory LLC raised its position in shares of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Pflug Koory LLC now owns 1,621 shares of the consumer goods maker's stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. raised its position in shares of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 2,748 shares of the consumer goods maker's stock valued at $151,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 5.53% of the company's stock.

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV Trading Down 1.8 %

BUD traded down $1.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $58.67. The stock had a trading volume of 1,556,327 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,326,390. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $61.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.13. Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV has a 1-year low of $51.66 and a 1-year high of $66.56.

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The consumer goods maker reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.06. Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 13.57%. The company had revenue of $14.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV will post 3.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on BUD shares. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $60.00 to $76.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered shares of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $71.70.

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV Company Profile

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV produces, distributes, exports, markets, and sells beer and beverages. It offers a portfolio of approximately 500 beer brands, which primarily include Budweiser, Corona, and Stella Artois; Beck's, Hoegaarden, Leffe, and Michelob Ultra; and Aguila, Antarctica, Bud Light, Brahma, Cass, Castle, Castle Lite, Cristal, Harbin, Jupiler, Modelo Especial, Quilmes, Victoria, Sedrin, and Skol brands.