Ambev Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:ABEV)

Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) was the target of unusually large options trading on Monday. Investors acquired 2,166 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 814% compared to the average daily volume of 237 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ABEV shares. Scotiabank cut shares of Ambev from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. UBS Group set a $2.85 price target on shares of Ambev in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ambev in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ambev currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $3.08.

Ambev Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of ABEV stock opened at $3.23 on Wednesday. Ambev has a twelve month low of $2.10 and a twelve month high of $3.45. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $2.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.58.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.04. Ambev had a net margin of 18.47% and a return on equity of 17.48%. The business had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.05 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ambev will post 0.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ambev Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.0092 per share. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 23rd. Ambev’s payout ratio is 15.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ambev

In related news, Director Manuel Moreira sold 468,040 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.08, for a total value of $1,441,563.20. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,000,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,240,000. This trade represents a 13.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Institutional Trading of Ambev

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Ambev by 18.0% during the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 185,499 shares of the company’s stock worth $582,000 after purchasing an additional 28,350 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ambev in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ambev by 0.8% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,066,693 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,769,000 after buying an additional 31,942 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Ambev by 19.1% in the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 146,396 shares of the company’s stock valued at $460,000 after buying an additional 23,441 shares during the period. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Ambev in the second quarter valued at about $770,000. 8.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ambev Company Profile

Ambev SA is a Brazilian beverage company and one of the largest brewers in Latin America. The company produces, distributes and sells beer, carbonated soft drinks, nonalcoholic beverages and other drink products through a portfolio that includes brands such as Brahma, Skol, Antarctica, Bohemia, Budweiser, Stella Artois and Guaraná Antarctica.

Founded in 1999 through the merger of Companhia Antarctica Paulista and Companhia Cervejaria Brahma, Ambev became part of Anheuser-Busch InBev following the latter’s combination with Anheuser-Busch in 2008.