Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Hits Estimates

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) posted its earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.04, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $3.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.05 billion. Ambev had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 17.69%.

Ambev Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ABEV traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $3.10. 59,900,749 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 25,733,643. Ambev has a 52 week low of $2.10 and a 52 week high of $3.45. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $3.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $3.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company has a market cap of $48.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.29, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.64.

Ambev Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.0092 per share. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 24th. Ambev’s payout ratio is currently 10.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Ambev from $2.65 to $2.90 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Scotiabank lowered shares of Ambev from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Ambev from $3.00 to $3.50 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Ambev from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ambev has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $3.09.

Insider Transactions at Ambev

In related news, insider Paulo Andre Zagman sold 136,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.41, for a total value of $464,612.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 230,535 shares in the company, valued at $786,124.35. This represents a 37.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Institutional Trading of Ambev

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABEV. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Ambev by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 23,578 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 3,553 shares in the last quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec increased its position in shares of Ambev by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 100,451 shares of the company’s stock valued at $248,000 after purchasing an additional 4,237 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL raised its stake in shares of Ambev by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 140,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $313,000 after buying an additional 4,557 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Ambev by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 32,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 4,871 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ambev by 46.4% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 19,593 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 6,208 shares during the period. 8.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ambev Company Profile

Ambev (NYSE: ABEV) is a Brazilian-based beverage company that produces, distributes and markets a broad portfolio of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The company’s core business centers on brewing and selling beer, alongside a range of soft drinks, bottled water, energy drinks and other malt-based beverages. Headquartered in São Paulo, Ambev operates an integrated value chain that covers manufacturing, packaging, logistics and commercial sales to retail, on-premise and institutional customers.

The company traces its origins to the 1999 merger of two historic Brazilian breweries, and later became part of the broader global brewing group through subsequent industry consolidations.