Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) Upgraded by DA Davidson to “Hold” Rating

DA Davidson upgraded shares of Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) to a hold rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

MZTI has been the subject of several other research reports. Weiss Ratings lowered Marzetti from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Stephens decreased their target price on Marzetti from $160.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $169.33.

Marzetti Price Performance

NASDAQ:MZTI traded up $2.24 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $114.57. The stock had a trading volume of 15,730 shares, compared to its average volume of 299,170. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $113.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $141.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.93 and a beta of 0.32. Marzetti has a one year low of $104.28 and a one year high of $190.96.

Marzetti Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.60%.

Insider Transactions at Marzetti

In other news, insider Luis Viso sold 1,221 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.31, for a total value of $133,467.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $210,312.44. This represents a 38.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 29.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Marzetti

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Marzetti by 3.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 32,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,710,000 after buying an additional 1,186 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Marzetti by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 11,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,036,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Marzetti by 16.1% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 221,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,736,000 after purchasing an additional 30,731 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in shares of Marzetti during the 1st quarter valued at $231,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in Marzetti in the 1st quarter worth $2,310,000. Institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Marzetti Company Profile

Lancaster Colony Corporation engages in the manufacturing and marketing of specialty food products for the retail and foodservice channels in the United States. It operates in two segments, Retail and Foodservice. The company offers frozen garlic bread under the New York BRAND Bakery; frozen Parkerhouse style yeast and dinner rolls under the Sister Schubert's brand; salad dressings under the Marzetti, Simply Dressed, Cardini's, and Girard's brands; vegetable and fruit dips under the Marzetti brand; croutons and salad toppings under the New York BRAND Bakery, Chatham Village, and Marzetti brands; and frozen pasta under the Marzetti Frozen Pasta brand.