Cook & Bynum Capital Management LLC Makes New $4.25 Billion Investment in Ambev S.A. $ABEV

Cook & Bynum Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 1,354,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,251,588,000. Ambev comprises 3.2% of Cook & Bynum Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ABEV. Integrated Advisors Network LLC purchased a new stake in Ambev during the first quarter valued at about $31,000. IHT Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ambev in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. First Trust Advisors LP acquired a new position in Ambev during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in Ambev during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Ambev in the first quarter worth $32,000. 8.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ricardo Manuel Frangat Moreira sold 468,040 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.08, for a total transaction of $1,441,563.20. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,000,000 shares in the company, valued at $9,240,000. This trade represents a 13.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Ambev Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE ABEV opened at $2.94 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $46.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Ambev S.A. has a 12 month low of $2.10 and a 12 month high of $3.45. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $3.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3.05.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04. The business had revenue of $3.89 billion for 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that Ambev S.A. will post 0.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ambev Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 23rd will be issued a $0.0092 dividend. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 23rd. Ambev’s payout ratio is 10.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ABEV. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Ambev from $3.00 to $3.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Scotiabank lowered Ambev from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. UBS Group set a $2.85 price target on Ambev in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ambev in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $3.08.

Ambev 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.