Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) Sees Large Volume Increase – Still a Buy?

Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ) shares saw unusually-high trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 2,308,178 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 0% from the previous session’s volume of 2,301,956 shares.The stock last traded at $14.0950 and had previously closed at $14.06.

More Utz Brands News

Here are the key news stories impacting Utz Brands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Utz announced a take-private agreement with Intersnack at $14.25 per share, which lifted the stock sharply as investors priced in the acquisition premium. Utz Will Go Private in $2.9B Deal With Intersnack
• Positive Sentiment: Piper Sandler reaffirmed a neutral rating but raised its price target to $14.25 from $10.00, effectively aligning its target with the deal price and reinforcing the transaction’s valuation. Piper Sandler rating update
• Neutral Sentiment: Several law firms announced investigations into whether the buyout price and process were fair to shareholders, which may add headline noise but does not change the announced terms. Kaskela Law Alert
• Neutral Sentiment: Other reports focused on the deal and cited UTZ’s move to go private, keeping attention on the acquisition rather than operations or earnings. Baltimore favorite Utz plans to go private in deal valued at nearly $3B
• Negative Sentiment: DA Davidson, Barclays, and Stephens all downgraded the stock or moved to a more cautious stance, suggesting less upside beyond the deal price and reflecting uncertainty around the transaction. Barclays Downgrades Utz Brands

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UTZ has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $14.25 price target (up from $10.00) on shares of Utz Brands in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Utz Brands from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $14.25 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Utz Brands from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Barclays cut Utz Brands from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $14.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $14.25 price objective (down from $15.00) on shares of Utz Brands in a research note on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $13.39.

Utz Brands Stock Up 0.2%

The firm has a market cap of $2.03 billion, a P/E ratio of -140.84, a P/E/G ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 0.82. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $7.83 and its 200 day moving average is $8.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $361.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $361.76 million. Utz Brands had a negative net margin of 0.58% and a positive return on equity of 8.61%. The business’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.16 EPS. Utz Brands has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.771-0.795 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Utz Brands, Inc. will post 0.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Utz Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, June 22nd were given a dividend of $0.063 per share. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 22nd. Utz Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -250.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Utz Brands

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new position in Utz Brands in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its stake in Utz Brands by 431.5% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 3,343 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 2,714 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in Utz Brands by 76.1% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 3,756 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,623 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Utz Brands by 118.5% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,356 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 2,362 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Utz Brands by 363.5% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 6,086 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 4,773 shares in the last quarter. 95.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Utz Brands

Utz Brands, Inc is a leading U.S. manufacturer and distributor of salty snack foods, offering a wide range of products including potato chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, popcorn and tortilla chips. Headquartered in Hanover, Pennsylvania, the company markets its snacks under several well-known brands and serves grocery, mass merchandise, club, convenience and online retailers throughout the United States.

Founded in 1921 by Bill and Salie Utz as a small country store operation, the business expanded gradually through direct delivery to local customers and sales to regional grocers.