Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Key Points

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Shares of Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $13.93, but opened at $12.75. Utz Brands shares last traded at $12.35, with a volume of 734,644 shares.

The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.19 by ($0.02). Utz Brands had a net margin of 1.27% and a return on equity of 7.80%. The business had revenue of $366.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $360.55 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.19 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Utz Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were given a $0.061 dividend. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This is a positive change from Utz Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $0.01. Utz Brands's payout ratio is currently 75.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on UTZ shares. Barclays cut their target price on Utz Brands from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 27th. DA Davidson raised Utz Brands from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $16.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. TD Cowen downgraded Utz Brands from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their target price for the company from $17.00 to $15.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Utz Brands from $13.50 to $15.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Utz Brands presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $17.88.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director William Jr. Werzyn purchased 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $11.81 per share, with a total value of $94,480.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 22,970 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $271,275.70. This trade represents a 53.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy Brown purchased 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $11.96 per share, for a total transaction of $59,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 67,573 shares in the company, valued at $808,173.08. This trade represents a 7.99% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 16.32% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Utz Brands

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UTZ. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Utz Brands by 38.0% during the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,671,757 shares of the company's stock worth $79,858,000 after purchasing an additional 1,560,884 shares during the period. Tributary Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Utz Brands during the 1st quarter worth about $11,697,000. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its position in shares of Utz Brands by 221.7% during the 1st quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 914,325 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,874,000 after acquiring an additional 630,149 shares during the period. Champlain Investment Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Utz Brands by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 5,208,402 shares of the company's stock valued at $81,564,000 after acquiring an additional 620,196 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Utz Brands by 40.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,022,709 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,480,000 after acquiring an additional 585,952 shares during the period. 95.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Utz Brands Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.10, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.17. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $13.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.41.

About Utz Brands

Utz Brands, Inc engages in manufacture, marketing, and distribution of snack foods. It offers a range of salty snacks, including salty snacks, including potato chips, tortilla chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, pork skins, veggie snacks, pub/party mixes, tortilla chips, salsa and dips, ready-to-eat popcorn, and other snacks under the Utz, Zapp's, ON THE BORDER, Golden Flake, Boulder Canyon, Hawaiian, TORTIYAHS!, etc.