Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) Announces Earnings Results

Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The company reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, Zacks reports. Marzetti had a return on equity of 18.87% and a net margin of 8.77%.

Marzetti Stock Performance

MZTI stock opened at $158.24 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.07 and a beta of 0.43. Marzetti has a fifty-two week low of $152.95 and a fifty-two week high of $202.63. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $172.65 and a 200-day moving average of $172.75.

Marzetti Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 8th were paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 8th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.60%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of Marzetti during the 1st quarter worth $2,310,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Marzetti by 16.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 221,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,736,000 after acquiring an additional 30,731 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Marzetti by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 11,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,036,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Marzetti by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 32,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,710,000 after acquiring an additional 1,186 shares during the period. Finally, United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in shares of Marzetti during the 1st quarter worth $231,000. Institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MZTI. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Marzetti in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Marzetti in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on Marzetti from $193.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Benchmark upped their price objective on Marzetti from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $189.67.

About Marzetti

Lancaster Colony Corporation engages in the manufacturing and marketing of specialty food products for the retail and foodservice channels in the United States. It operates in two segments, Retail and Foodservice. The company offers frozen garlic bread under the New York BRAND Bakery; frozen Parkerhouse style yeast and dinner rolls under the Sister Schubert's brand; salad dressings under the Marzetti, Simply Dressed, Cardini's, and Girard's brands; vegetable and fruit dips under the Marzetti brand; croutons and salad toppings under the New York BRAND Bakery, Chatham Village, and Marzetti brands; and frozen pasta under the Marzetti Frozen Pasta brand.