Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 365,333 Shares of Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. cut its stake in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO - Free Report) by 86.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,618 shares of the company's stock after selling 365,333 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in Flowers Foods were worth $1,321,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FLO. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Flowers Foods during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in Flowers Foods during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. HM Payson & Co. bought a new stake in Flowers Foods during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Flowers Foods during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Flowers Foods during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.45% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Flowers Foods

In other Flowers Foods news, insider Terry S. Thomas sold 36,577 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.11, for a total transaction of $845,294.47. Following the sale, the insider now owns 42,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $987,721.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Flowers Foods news, insider Terry S. Thomas sold 36,577 shares of Flowers Foods stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.11, for a total transaction of $845,294.47. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 42,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $987,721.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Edward J. Jr. Casey acquired 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $23.55 per share, for a total transaction of $117,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 20,330 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $478,771.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 11.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Flowers Foods Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of Flowers Foods stock traded down $0.10 on Monday, reaching $24.35. The stock had a trading volume of 1,918,497 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,242,445. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.27, a P/E/G ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $23.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.87. Flowers Foods, Inc. has a 1 year low of $19.64 and a 1 year high of $26.33.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.02). Flowers Foods had a return on equity of 18.35% and a net margin of 2.45%. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.38 earnings per share. Flowers Foods's revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Flowers Foods, Inc. will post 1.25 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on FLO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Flowers Foods from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Flowers Foods from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Flowers Foods from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $24.00.

Flowers Foods Company Profile

Flowers Foods, Inc produces and markets packaged bakery food products in the United States. Its principal products include fresh breads, buns, rolls, snack items, bagels, English muffins, and tortillas, as well as frozen breads and rolls under the Nature's Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder, Canyon Bakehouse, Mrs.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding FLO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.