Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) Sets New 12-Month Low - Time to Sell?

Shares of Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $17.99 and last traded at $18.29, with a volume of 301062 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.16.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. DA Davidson lowered their target price on Flowers Foods from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of Flowers Foods from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Flowers Foods from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $21.00.

Flowers Foods Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.98 billion, a PE ratio of 16.12, a P/E/G ratio of 8.72 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $18.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $20.91.

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Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.01. Flowers Foods had a net margin of 4.86% and a return on equity of 19.48%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.20 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Flowers Foods, Inc. will post 1.18 EPS for the current year.

Flowers Foods Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.09%. Flowers Foods's payout ratio is currently 82.05%.

Institutional Trading of Flowers Foods

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FLO. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in shares of Flowers Foods in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in Flowers Foods in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in Flowers Foods by 171.8% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 2,623 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 1,658 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew 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 worth $56,000 after buying an additional 694 shares during the period. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Flowers Foods in the fourth quarter worth $60,000. 75.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Flowers Foods Company 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.