Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Increases Position in Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) by 46.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 99,571 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,746 shares during the quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ambev were worth $232,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Ambev by 468.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 10,998 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 9,063 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ambev in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Naviter Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Ambev in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Generation Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ambev during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Ambev by 51.4% in the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 17,084 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 5,798 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 8.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABEV has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays upped their price target on Ambev from $2.00 to $2.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen initiated coverage on Ambev in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. UBS Group upped their price target on Ambev from $2.60 to $2.70 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded Ambev from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $2.60.

Ambev Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ABEV opened at $2.49 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $2.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $2.20. The company has a market cap of $39.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.74. Ambev S.A. has a 1-year low of $1.76 and a 1-year high of $2.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.04. The business had revenue of $3.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.40 billion. Ambev had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 15.76%. Analysts forecast that Ambev S.A. will post 0.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ambev Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a — dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $0.0219 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This represents a dividend yield of 5%. Ambev’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.75%.

Ambev Company Profile

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.