Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) Shares Purchased by Meritage Portfolio Management

Meritage Portfolio Management raised its stake in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) by 64.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 160,588 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 62,923 shares during the quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management owned about 0.08% of Flowers Foods worth $3,615,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mastrapasqua Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Flowers Foods by 5.1% during the third quarter. Mastrapasqua Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $217,000 after purchasing an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP lifted its position in Flowers Foods by 46.4% during the 3rd quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in Flowers Foods by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 12,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $277,000 after acquiring an additional 696 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Flowers Foods by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 57,303 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,271,000 after purchasing an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AM Investment Strategies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Flowers Foods by 7.4% in the third quarter. AM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 11,706 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.45% of the company’s stock.

Flowers Foods Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE FLO traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $24.89. 986,046 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,180,804. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The company has a market capitalization of $5.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.98, a P/E/G ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $23.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.38. Flowers Foods, Inc. has a 52-week low of $19.64 and a 52-week high of $29.10.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.20. Flowers Foods had a return on equity of 18.15% and a net margin of 2.42%. The company had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.13 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.23 EPS. Flowers Foods’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Flowers Foods, Inc. will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Flowers Foods Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Flowers Foods’s payout ratio is 158.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Flowers Foods

In related news, insider Terry S. Thomas sold 36,577 shares of the firm’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 value of $845,294.47. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 42,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $987,721.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Terry S. Thomas sold 36,577 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.11, for a total value of $845,294.47. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $987,721.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Edward J. Jr. Casey bought 5,000 shares of Flowers Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $23.55 per share, for a total transaction of $117,750.00. Following 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. 11.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on FLO. DA Davidson began coverage on shares of Flowers Foods in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $24.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded Flowers Foods from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $24.00.

About Flowers Foods

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.