Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ) Short Interest Down 26.1% in February

Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 5,440,000 shares, a drop of 26.1% from the February 13th total of 7,360,000 shares. Approximately 7.8% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,040,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.2 days.

Utz Brands Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE:UTZ traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $13.29. 672,728 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 777,848. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 73.82, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.05. Utz Brands has a 52 week low of $12.71 and a 52 week high of $20.04. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $13.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $341.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $349.93 million. Utz Brands had a net margin of 1.13% and a return on equity of 7.92%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.16 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Utz Brands will post 0.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on UTZ. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Utz Brands from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Utz Brands from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Utz Brands from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Utz Brands from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Utz Brands from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $19.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Utz Brands

In other Utz Brands news, CEO Howard A. Friedman purchased 3,525 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $14.16 per share, for a total transaction of $49,914.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 265,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,762,722.64. The trade was a 1.34 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cc Collier Holdings, Llc sold 496,038 shares of Utz Brands stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.40, for a total transaction of $6,646,909.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 17.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Utz Brands

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Newton One Investments LLC bought a new position in Utz Brands in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Utz Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of Utz Brands by 112.7% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 4,078 shares in the last quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division bought a new position in shares of Utz Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $169,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Utz Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $183,000. 95.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Utz Brands Company Profile

Utz Brands, Inc engages in manufacture, marketing, and distribution of snack foods. It offers a range of salty snacks, including salty snacks, including potato chips, tortilla chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, pork skins, veggie snacks, pub/party mixes, tortilla chips, salsa and dips, ready-to-eat popcorn, and other snacks under the Utz, Zapp’s, ON THE BORDER, Golden Flake, Boulder Canyon, Hawaiian, TORTIYAHS!, etc.