Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Acquires New Position in The Marzetti Company $MZTI

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new position in The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 18,791 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,864,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. D.A. Davidson & CO. acquired a new position in Marzetti in the third quarter worth approximately $945,000. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Marzetti during the 3rd quarter valued at $215,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in shares of Marzetti by 52.1% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 949 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marzetti by 531.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 638 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 537 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marzetti by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,437 shares of the company’s stock worth $638,000 after acquiring an additional 481 shares in the last quarter. 66.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MZTI shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Marzetti in a report on Monday, August 17th. DA Davidson cut their target price on Marzetti from $168.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Marzetti in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Marzetti currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $132.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Luis Viso sold 997 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.81, for a total value of $100,507.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,047 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $105,548.07. This trade represents a 48.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 29.30% of the company’s stock.

Marzetti Stock Performance

Shares of MZTI opened at $104.93 on Friday. The Marzetti Company has a one year low of $97.00 and a one year high of $176.26. The company has a 50-day moving average of $104.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $123.69. The stock has a market cap of $2.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.58 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.23). Marzetti had a return on equity of 16.46% and a net margin of 9.06%. The firm had revenue of $481.52 million during the quarter. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.74 earnings per share. Marzetti’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Marzetti Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th were given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 8th. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio is 63.19%.

Marzetti Company Profile

T. Marzetti Company is a food manufacturer and marketer based in Columbus, Ohio. The company develops, produces and distributes specialty food products for retail and foodservice customers, with a portfolio focused on dressings, dips, sauces, frozen breads and related prepared foods.

Its brand portfolio includes Marzetti, Simply Dressed, New York Bakery, Sister Schubert’s, Flatout, Cardini’s and Girard’s, among others. These products are sold through grocery retailers and other retail channels, while the company also supplies restaurants, institutional foodservice operators and other commercial customers.

The company traces its roots to 1896, when Teresa Marzetti opened a restaurant in Columbus, Ohio.