Brokerages Set Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) PT at $2.53

Shares of Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) have earned an average rating of “Reduce” from the ten brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and nine have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $2.5267.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $2.88 target price on shares of Ambev in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. Zacks Research raised Ambev from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ambev in a research note on Monday, December 29th.

Ambev Stock Performance

Ambev stock opened at $2.56 on Wednesday. Ambev has a 52 week low of $1.77 and a 52 week high of $2.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock has a market cap of $40.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $2.48 and a 200-day moving average of $2.35.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.97 billion. Ambev had a net margin of 17.90% and a return on equity of 15.81%. On average, analysts expect that Ambev will post 0.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ambev Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a special dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 22nd were paid a $0.049 dividend. This represents a yield of 1,465.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 22nd. Ambev’s payout ratio is presently 183.33%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ambev

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Ambev in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. First Trust Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ambev in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ambev during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Modern Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ambev during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Finally, Bensler LLC bought a new position in Ambev in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 8.13% of the company’s stock.

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.