Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Takes Position in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO)

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 36,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $758,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its position in shares of Flowers Foods by 171.8% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 2,623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 1,658 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Flowers Foods by 34.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,713 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 694 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Flowers Foods by 104.2% during the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 3,049 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 1,556 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Flowers Foods by 67.7% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 1,323 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Flowers Foods in the fourth quarter valued at $245,000. 75.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Flowers Foods Price Performance

FLO opened at $18.20 on Friday. Flowers Foods, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.33 and a 12-month high of $26.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.55, a PEG ratio of 8.72 and a beta of 0.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $18.71 and a 200-day moving average of $20.51.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 7th. The company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.01. Flowers Foods had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 4.86%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.20 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Flowers Foods, Inc. will post 1.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Flowers Foods Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.28%. Flowers Foods’s payout ratio is 82.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on FLO. StockNews.com lowered Flowers Foods from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Flowers Foods from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of Flowers Foods from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.00.

About Flowers Foods

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.