Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) Stock Price Breaks Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Ambev shares fell below their 200-day moving average, trading as low as $2.74 versus the $3.02 average, and were last reported at $2.8350.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: Ambev has an average “Reduce” rating and a consensus price target of $3.13, despite some upgrades to “Buy.”
• The company met quarterly EPS expectations at $0.04 but reported revenue below estimates; it also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.0092 per share, representing a 1.3% yield.

Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV - Get Free Report)'s share price passed below its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $3.02 and traded as low as $2.74. Ambev shares last traded at $2.8350, with a volume of 63,602,108 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABEV has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $3.30 price objective on shares of Ambev in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Weiss Ratings raised Ambev from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Scotiabank cut Ambev from a "sector outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. UBS Group set a $2.85 price target on Ambev in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ambev from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ambev has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $3.13.

Ambev Trading Down 14.1%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $3.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $3.02. The firm has a market cap of $44.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.17, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.58.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.04. Ambev had a return on equity of 17.48% and a net margin of 18.47%. The company had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.05 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ambev S.A. will post 0.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ambev Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.0092 per share. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 23rd. Ambev's dividend payout ratio is 15.00%.

Insider Activity at Ambev

In other news, insider Carla Smith De Vasconcellos Crippa Prado sold 60,757 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.09, for a total transaction of $187,739.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 80,707 shares in the company, valued at $249,384.63. The trade was a 42.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Manuel Moreira sold 468,040 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.08, for a total transaction of $1,441,563.20. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,000,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,240,000. The trade was a 13.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ambev

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ambev by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 349,323,217 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,096,875,000 after purchasing an additional 2,338,660 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in shares of Ambev by 6.5% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 27,354,300 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,875,000 after acquiring an additional 1,674,900 shares during the last quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Ambev by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 10,779,739 shares of the company's stock worth $31,477,000 after acquiring an additional 231,992 shares in the last quarter. Formuepleje A S acquired a new position in shares of Ambev in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $23,610,000. Finally, DJE Kapital AG acquired a new position in shares of Ambev in the 1st quarter worth approximately $14,778,000. 8.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ambev Company Profile

Ambev SA is a Brazilian beverage company headquartered in São Paulo and one of the largest beverage producers in Latin America. Its principal business is the production, distribution and sale of beer, although it also offers soft drinks, carbonated beverages, bottled water, energy drinks and other non-alcoholic products.

The company's beer portfolio includes brands such as Brahma, Skol, Antarctica, Bohemia, Original, Budweiser, Stella Artois and Corona, with brand availability varying by market.

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