Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) Sees Strong Trading Volume

Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) shares saw unusually-high trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 7,514,997 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 48% from the previous session’s volume of 14,564,519 shares.The stock last traded at $2.06 and had previously closed at $2.09.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ABEV has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Ambev from $3.20 to $2.90 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Ambev from $3.00 to $2.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ambev presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $2.75.

Ambev Price Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $2.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $2.36. The stock has a market cap of $32.61 billion, a PE ratio of 10.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.56 billion. Ambev had a net margin of 18.25% and a return on equity of 17.53%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.03 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Ambev S.A. will post 0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Ambev by 323.2% during the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 9,913,282 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,322,000 after acquiring an additional 7,570,842 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd lifted its stake in Ambev by 10.1% during the 1st quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 65,003,922 shares of the company’s stock valued at $161,210,000 after acquiring an additional 5,943,974 shares during the period. Seafarer Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Ambev by 29.9% during the 1st quarter. Seafarer Capital Partners LLC now owns 25,199,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,494,000 after acquiring an additional 5,800,000 shares during the period. Ruffer LLP lifted its stake in Ambev by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Ruffer LLP now owns 51,517,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $144,494,000 after acquiring an additional 5,699,184 shares during the period. Finally, Oldfield Partners LLP bought a new position in Ambev during the 1st quarter valued at about $12,157,000. 8.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ambev

Ambev SA, through its subsidiaries, engages in the production, distribution, and sale of beer, draft beer, carbonated soft drinks, other non-alcoholic beverages, malt, and food products. It offers beer primarily under the Skol, Brahma, Antarctica, Brahva, Budweiser, Bud Light, Beck, Leffe and Hoegaarden, Bucanero, Cristal, Mayabe, Presidente, Presidente Light, Brahma Light, Bohemia, The One, Corona, Modelo Especial, Stella Artois, Quilmes Clásica, Paceña, Taquiña, Huari, Becker, Cusqueña, Michelob Ultra, Busch, Pilsen, Ouro Fino, Banks, Deputy, Patricia, Labatt Blue, Alexander Keith's, and Kokanee brands.