Flowers Foods, Inc. $FLO Holdings Raised by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) by 29.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,211,219 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 272,765 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Flowers Foods were worth $9,871,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. WealthCollab LLC increased its position in shares of Flowers Foods by 1,623.7% in the fourth quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 2,327 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 2,192 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its position in shares of Flowers Foods by 225.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 2,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,663 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Flowers Foods by 176.1% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,070 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,958 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Flowers Foods by 151.2% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,836 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its position in Flowers Foods by 140.7% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 3,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,768 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.45% of the company’s stock.

Flowers Foods Trading Down 1.8%

Flowers Foods stock opened at $7.01 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $7.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $8.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Flowers Foods, Inc. has a 12 month low of $6.80 and a 12 month high of $16.85. The stock has a market cap of $1.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.04 and a beta of 0.39.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.58 billion. Flowers Foods had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 1.38%.Flowers Foods’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.35 earnings per share. Flowers Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.800-0.900 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Flowers Foods, Inc. will post 0.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Flowers Foods Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th were paid a dividend of $0.125 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.1%. Flowers Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 142.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on FLO shares. Stephens reduced their target price on Flowers Foods from $11.00 to $8.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Zacks Research upgraded Flowers Foods from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Weiss Ratings raised Flowers Foods from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Flowers Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 3rd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price objective on Flowers Foods from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $9.60.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Diego Anthony Scaglione purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $7.51 per share, with a total value of $37,550.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 194,180 shares in the company, valued at $1,458,291.80. This represents a 2.64% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 7.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Flowers Foods

Flowers Foods, Inc is one of the largest producers of packaged bakery foods in the United States, offering a variety of fresh bread, buns, rolls, snack cakes and tortillas. Headquartered in Thomasville, Georgia, the company operates an extensive network of bakeries and distribution centers that serve retail grocery chains, convenience stores, mass merchandisers and foodservice customers nationwide. Flowers Foods markets its products under well-known brands such as Nature’s Own, Wonder, Dave’s Killer Bread, Mrs.