Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) Stock Price Up 5.9% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Flowers Foods shares rose 5.9% to about $6.15, although trading volume was 84% below the stock’s average daily volume.
• Analyst sentiment remains weak: Flowers Foods has an average “Reduce” rating, with four Hold ratings and three Sell ratings, while the consensus price target is $6.80.
• The company reported declining financial performance, including a quarterly EPS miss and 4% year-over-year revenue decline, but maintains a high annualized dividend of $0.50 per share, yielding approximately 7.8%.

Shares of Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO - Get Free Report) rose 5.9% during trading on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $6.17 and last traded at $6.1540. Approximately 1,061,759 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 6,489,950 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.81.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Flowers Foods from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Flowers Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Flowers Foods from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Stephens decreased their price objective on shares of Flowers Foods from $8.00 to $6.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 24th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane lowered their target price on shares of Flowers Foods from $6.50 to $5.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Flowers Foods currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $6.80.

Flowers Foods Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $6.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $7.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.70 and a beta of 0.43.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.01). Flowers Foods had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 1.06%. The company had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.28 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Flowers Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.750-0.850 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Flowers Foods, Inc. will post 0.80 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Flowers Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th were issued a dividend of $0.1250 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 11th. Flowers Foods's dividend payout ratio is 192.31%.

Insider Transactions at Flowers Foods

In other news, insider Cindy Cox sold 4,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.89, for a total value of $25,916.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 41,030 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $241,666.70. This trade represents a 9.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 7.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Flowers Foods

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FLO. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Flowers Foods by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,256 shares of the company's stock valued at $132,000 after purchasing an additional 1,155 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its holdings in Flowers Foods by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 43,305 shares of the company's stock valued at $353,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp increased its position in Flowers Foods by 15.7% in the 1st quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 12,801 shares of the company's stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 1,735 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Flowers Foods by 129.2% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 3,457 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 1,949 shares during the period. Finally, Kera Capital Partners Inc. increased its position in Flowers Foods by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 37,728 shares of the company's stock worth $307,000 after buying an additional 1,985 shares during the period. 75.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Flowers Foods

Flowers Foods, Inc is a producer and marketer of packaged bakery foods in the United States. The company makes and distributes bread, buns, rolls, snack cakes, pastries, and other baked goods through a network of bakeries and distribution operations.

Its portfolio includes well-known brands such as Nature's Own, Wonder, Dave's Killer Bread, Tastykake, Canyon Bakehouse, and Mrs. Freshley's. Flowers Foods sells products through grocery stores, mass merchandisers, club stores, foodservice distributors, convenience stores, and other retail channels.

Founded in 1919 and headquartered in Thomasville, Georgia, Flowers Foods serves customers across the United States.

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