Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at DA Davidson

DA Davidson upgraded shares of Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

UTZ has been the topic of several other research reports. Zacks Research raised Utz Brands from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Utz Brands in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $15.00 price objective on shares of Utz Brands in a report on Thursday, April 9th. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Utz Brands from $11.00 to $9.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Utz Brands in a report on Monday, April 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $10.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Utz Brands currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $12.06.

Utz Brands Trading Up 3.1%

Shares of NYSE:UTZ traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $8.37. 117,900 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,857,127. Utz Brands has a 1 year low of $6.78 and a 1 year high of $14.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $7.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.55. The firm has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -83.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.82.

Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.01. Utz Brands had a positive return on equity of 8.61% and a negative net margin of 0.58%.The company had revenue of $361.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $361.76 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.16 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Utz Brands has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.771-0.795 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Utz Brands will post 0.78 EPS for the current year.

Utz Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.063 per share. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 22nd. Utz Brands’s payout ratio is -250.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Utz Brands

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Utz Brands by 22.2% during the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 886,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,199,000 after acquiring an additional 160,720 shares in the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Utz Brands in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,336,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Utz Brands by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 3,449,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,810,000 after purchasing an additional 318,763 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP purchased a new position in Utz Brands in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,984,000. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Utz Brands by 78.7% in the fourth quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 585,856 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,081,000 after purchasing an additional 258,003 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.97% of the company’s stock.

Utz Brands Company Profile

Utz Brands, Inc is a leading U.S. manufacturer and distributor of salty snack foods, offering a wide range of products including potato chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, popcorn and tortilla chips. Headquartered in Hanover, Pennsylvania, the company markets its snacks under several well-known brands and serves grocery, mass merchandise, club, convenience and online retailers throughout the United States.

Founded in 1921 by Bill and Salie Utz as a small country store operation, the business expanded gradually through direct delivery to local customers and sales to regional grocers.