Mondelez International, Inc. Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.47 (NASDAQ:MDLZ)

Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, February 14th,Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of 0.47 per share on Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st.

Mondelez International has raised its dividend by an average of 10.4% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 12 years. Mondelez International has a payout ratio of 58.4% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Mondelez International to earn $3.26 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.88 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 57.7%.

Mondelez International Stock Performance

MDLZ stock opened at $60.82 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $59.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.18. The company has a market capitalization of $81.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.78, a PEG ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54. Mondelez International has a 1-year low of $53.95 and a 1-year high of $76.06.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.66 by ($0.01). Mondelez International had a net margin of 12.68% and a return on equity of 16.75%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Mondelez International will post 2.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mondelez International declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $9.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 10.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on MDLZ shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Mondelez International from $61.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Mondelez International from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Mondelez International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $62.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Mondelez International from $69.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Mondelez International in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $82.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.74.

Mondelez International Company Profile

Mondelez International, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and sells snack food and beverage products in the Latin America, North America, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. It provides biscuits and baked snacks, including cookies, crackers, salted snacks, snack bars, and cakes and pastries; chocolates; and gums and candies, as well as various cheese and grocery, and powdered beverage products.