Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) saw strong trading volume on Thursday . 88,486,437 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 234% from the previous session’s volume of 26,484,584 shares.The stock last traded at $2.77 and had previously closed at $2.81.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABEV has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ambev from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ambev in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Scotiabank downgraded shares of Ambev from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. UBS Group set a $2.85 target price on shares of Ambev in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Ambev from $3.00 to $3.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ambev currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $3.08.

Ambev Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $44.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.10, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $3.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.05.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.05 billion. Ambev had a net margin of 18.47% and a return on equity of 17.48%. Equities analysts expect that Ambev S.A. will post 0.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Ambev Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 23rd will be issued a $0.0092 dividend. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 23rd. Ambev’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.00%.

Insider Activity at Ambev

In other news, Director Ricardo Manuel Frangat Moreira sold 468,040 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.08, for a total value of $1,441,563.20. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,000,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,240,000. This represents a 13.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ambev

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Trust Advisors LP bought a new position in Ambev in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ambev during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. IHT Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ambev during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. S Harris Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ambev during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Royal Palms Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Ambev in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Institutional investors own 8.13% of the company’s stock.

About Ambev

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.