Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” from Analysts

Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) has received a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the five analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $2.45.

ABEV has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Ambev in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. UBS Group cut shares of Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Barclays reduced their price objective on Ambev from $2.50 to $2.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley cut Ambev from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Bank of America cut Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th.

Institutional Trading of Ambev

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Ambev by 468.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 10,998 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 9,063 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ambev during the first quarter worth $27,000. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ambev during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new position in Ambev in the first quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Insight Inv LLC purchased a new position in Ambev in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 8.13% of the company’s stock.

Ambev Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE ABEV opened at $2.49 on Friday. Ambev has a 1 year low of $1.76 and a 1 year high of $2.59. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $2.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2.13. The company has a market cap of $39.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.81, a PEG ratio of 5.80 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.06 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $4.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.42 billion. Ambev had a return on equity of 16.12% and a net margin of 17.02%. Research analysts anticipate that Ambev will post 0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Ambev Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were issued a $0.0221 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.55%. Ambev’s payout ratio is 52.94%.

About Ambev

Ambev SA, through its subsidiaries, engages in the production, distribution, and sale of beer, draft beer, carbonated soft drinks, malt and food, other alcoholic beverages, and non-alcoholic and non-carbonated products in Brazil, Central America and Caribbean, Latin America South, and Canada. It offers beer primarily under the Skol, Brahma, Antarctica, Brahva, Budweiser, Bud Light, Beck, Leffe, Hoegaarden, Balboa ICE, Balboa, Atlas Golden Light, Atlas, Bucanero, Cristal, Mayabe, Presidente, Presidente Light, Brahma Light, Bohemia, The One, Corona, Modelo Especial, Stella Artois, Quilmes Clásica, Paceña, Taquiña, Huari, Becker, Cusqueña, Michelob Ultra, Busch, Pilsen, Ouro Fino, Bud 66, Banks, Deputy, Patricia, Labatt Blue, Alexander Keith’s, and Kokanee brands.