Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $2.49, but opened at $2.31. Ambev shares last traded at $2.3350, with a volume of 1,388,377 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on ABEV. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ambev in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Zacks Research upgraded Ambev from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $2.88 target price on shares of Ambev in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ambev has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $2.53.

Ambev Trading Down 7.8%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The company has a market capitalization of $36.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.70. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $2.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $2.34.

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

Ambev Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 9th. Investors of record on Monday, December 22nd will be given a $0.049 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 22nd. This represents a yield of 1,459.0%. Ambev’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.78%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ambev

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Ambev during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. First Trust Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of Ambev in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ambev in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Modern Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ambev in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, Bensler LLC bought a new position in Ambev during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Institutional investors 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.