Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Has $77.10 Million Stock Holdings in Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA decreased its position in Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 41,678,006 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,226,887 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 0.26% of Ambev worth $77,104,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in Ambev by 9.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,425,374 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,438,000 after acquiring an additional 878,900 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in shares of Ambev by 132.9% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,976,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,822,000 after purchasing an additional 1,127,719 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ambev by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 54,013 shares of the company’s stock worth $129,000 after purchasing an additional 8,350 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp raised its holdings in Ambev by 298.1% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 802,016 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,957,000 after buying an additional 600,545 shares during the period. Finally, Private Management Group Inc. lifted its stake in Ambev by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 14,512,234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,848,000 after buying an additional 1,083,882 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 8.13% of the company’s stock.

Ambev Price Performance

NYSE:ABEV opened at $2.31 on Friday. Ambev S.A. has a 52-week low of $1.76 and a 52-week high of $2.56. The company has a market cap of $36.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.81, a P/E/G ratio of 5.80 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.20. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $2.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $2.12.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by ($0.01). Ambev had a net margin of 17.02% and a return on equity of 16.12%. The firm had revenue of $4.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.42 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ambev S.A. will post 0.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ambev Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.0221 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.83%. Ambev’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.94%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ABEV. Bank of America lowered shares of Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Ambev in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays cut their target price on Ambev from $2.50 to $2.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Ambev in a research note on Monday, January 27th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $2.45.

Ambev Profile

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.