Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Shares of Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) have received an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the five brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and four have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $2.60.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on ABEV shares. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Ambev from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Wall Street Zen initiated coverage on shares of Ambev in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Ambev from $2.00 to $2.50 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Ambev from $2.60 to $2.70 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ambev

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GQG Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Ambev by 51.9% during the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 196,676,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $363,851,000 after buying an additional 67,180,274 shares during the period. Talaria Asset Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in shares of Ambev in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,602,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of Ambev by 1,641.9% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 19,001,985 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,154,000 after purchasing an additional 17,911,122 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Ambev by 201.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 26,087,675 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,262,000 after purchasing an additional 17,440,564 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its holdings in Ambev by 329.6% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 16,354,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,255,000 after purchasing an additional 12,546,800 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 8.13% of the company’s stock.

Ambev Trading Down 0.6%

ABEV opened at $2.40 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.74 billion, a PE ratio of 14.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.76. Ambev has a fifty-two week low of $1.76 and a fifty-two week high of $2.64. The company’s 50-day moving average is $2.47 and its 200 day moving average is $2.19.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.04. Ambev had a net margin of 15.76% and a return on equity of 14.74%. The firm had revenue of $3.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.40 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Ambev will post 0.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ambev Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a — dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a $0.0219 dividend. This represents a yield of 5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. Ambev’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.75%.

About Ambev

Ambev SA, through its subsidiaries, engages in the production, distribution, and sale of beer, draft beer, carbonated soft drinks, malt and food, other alcoholic beverages, and non-alcoholic and non-carbonated products in Brazil, Central America and Caribbean, Latin America South, and Canada. It offers beer primarily under the Skol, Brahma, Antarctica, Brahva, Budweiser, Bud Light, Beck, Leffe, Hoegaarden, Balboa ICE, Balboa, Atlas Golden Light, Atlas, Bucanero, Cristal, Mayabe, Presidente, Presidente Light, Brahma Light, Bohemia, The One, Corona, Modelo Especial, Stella Artois, Quilmes Clásica, Paceña, Taquiña, Huari, Becker, Cusqueña, Michelob Ultra, Busch, Pilsen, Ouro Fino, Bud 66, Banks, Deputy, Patricia, Labatt Blue, Alexander Keith’s, and Kokanee brands.