Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) Stock Gets Downgrade from Bank of America

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) was downgraded by equities researchers at Bank of America from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, October 7th, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $3.30 target price on the stock. Bank of America‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 18.49% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 22nd. Scotiabank downgraded Ambev from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ambev in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, UBS Group set a $2.85 target price on shares of Ambev in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $3.13.

Ambev Price Performance

Ambev stock traded down $0.09 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $2.79. The company had a trading volume of 25,751,319 shares, compared to its average volume of 26,481,008. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $3.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.90 billion, a PE ratio of 13.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.58. Ambev has a 1-year low of $2.18 and a 1-year high of $3.45.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.05 billion. Ambev had a net margin of 18.47% and a return on equity of 17.48%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ambev will post 0.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Carla Smith De Vasconcellos Crippa Prado sold 60,757 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.09, for a total value of $187,739.13. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 80,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $249,384.63. The trade was a 42.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Manuel Moreira sold 468,040 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.08, for a total transaction of $1,441,563.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,000,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,240,000. This trade represents a 13.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ambev

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABEV. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Ambev by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 349,323,217 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,096,875,000 after acquiring an additional 2,338,660 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in Ambev by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 27,354,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,875,000 after buying an additional 1,674,900 shares during the last quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its position in Ambev by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 22,600,124 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,822,000 after purchasing an additional 874,657 shares in the last quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP lifted its position in shares of Ambev by 2.2% during the third quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 10,779,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,477,000 after purchasing an additional 231,992 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ambev by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 9,414,370 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,253,000 after buying an additional 67,402 shares during the period. 8.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ambev

Ambev SA is a Brazilian beverage company headquartered in São Paulo and one of the largest beverage producers in Latin America. Its principal business is the production, distribution and sale of beer, although it also offers soft drinks, carbonated beverages, bottled water, energy drinks and other non-alcoholic products.

The company’s beer portfolio includes brands such as Brahma, Skol, Antarctica, Bohemia, Original, Budweiser, Stella Artois and Corona, with brand availability varying by market.