Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Increases Holdings in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,616,216 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,730 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 1.71% of Flowers Foods worth $81,401,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of FLO. HM Payson & Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Flowers Foods during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Flowers Foods in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Flowers Foods in the third quarter worth $32,000. Gladius Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of Flowers Foods by 46.4% in the third quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Flowers Foods during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. 75.45% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Flowers Foods Price Performance

NYSE FLO opened at $23.61 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.11. The business’s fifty day moving average is $24.00 and its 200 day moving average is $22.89. The company has a market capitalization of $4.99 billion, a PE ratio of 40.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.20 and a beta of 0.37. Flowers Foods, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $19.64 and a fifty-two week high of $26.33.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.02). Flowers Foods had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 18.35%. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Flowers Foods, Inc. will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on FLO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Flowers Foods from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Flowers Foods from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Flowers Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $24.00.

Insider Transactions at Flowers Foods

In other news, Director Edward J. Jr. Casey bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $23.55 per share, for a total transaction of $117,750.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 20,330 shares in the company, valued at $478,771.50. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Flowers Foods news, Director Edward J. Jr. Casey bought 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $23.55 per share, with a total value of $117,750.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 20,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $478,771.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Terry S. Thomas sold 36,577 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.11, for a total value of $845,294.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,740 shares in the company, valued at $987,721.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 11.42% of the company’s stock.

Flowers Foods Profile

Flowers Foods, Inc produces and markets packaged bakery food products in the United States. Its principal products include fresh breads, buns, rolls, snack items, bagels, English muffins, and tortillas, as well as frozen breads and rolls under the Nature's Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder, Canyon Bakehouse, Mrs.