Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) Shares Sold by Moran Wealth Management LLC

Moran Wealth Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) by 6.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,705,509 shares of the company’s stock after selling 108,790 shares during the quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Ambev were worth $3,155,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in Ambev by 9.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,425,374 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,438,000 after acquiring an additional 878,900 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ambev by 132.9% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,976,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,822,000 after purchasing an additional 1,127,719 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ambev by 18.3% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 54,013 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 8,350 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in Ambev by 298.1% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 802,016 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,957,000 after buying an additional 600,545 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Ambev by 32.0% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,067,893 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,606,000 after buying an additional 258,875 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 8.13% of the company’s stock.

Ambev Stock Down 2.0 %

Ambev stock opened at $2.19 on Wednesday. Ambev S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $1.76 and a fifty-two week high of $2.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.80 and a beta of 0.94. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $1.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $2.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.20.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by ($0.01). Ambev had a net margin of 17.02% and a return on equity of 16.12%. The business had revenue of $4.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.42 billion. Analysts predict that Ambev S.A. will post 0.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ambev Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.0221 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.04%. Ambev’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.94%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays lowered their price target on Ambev from $2.50 to $2.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Ambev in a research note on Monday, January 27th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Ambev in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $2.45.

About Ambev

Ambev SA, through its subsidiaries, engages in the production, distribution, and sale of beer, draft beer, carbonated soft drinks, malt and food, other alcoholic beverages, and non-alcoholic and non-carbonated products in Brazil, Central America and Caribbean, Latin America South, and Canada. It offers beer primarily under the Skol, Brahma, Antarctica, Brahva, Budweiser, Bud Light, Beck, Leffe, Hoegaarden, Balboa ICE, Balboa, Atlas Golden Light, Atlas, 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, Bud 66, Banks, Deputy, Patricia, Labatt Blue, Alexander Keith’s, and Kokanee brands.