New York State Common Retirement Fund Increases Position in Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV)

New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV - Free Report) by 37.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,085,500 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 298,000 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund's holdings in Ambev were worth $2,008,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Ambev by 185.5% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 34,678 shares of the company's stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 22,531 shares during the period. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new stake in Ambev in the fourth quarter worth $205,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Ambev by 39.9% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 18,519,980 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,892,000 after acquiring an additional 5,283,746 shares during the period. Angeles Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Ambev during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR raised its stake in shares of Ambev by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 173,066 shares of the company's stock valued at $320,000 after acquiring an additional 6,078 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 8.13% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ABEV. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Ambev in a research report on Monday, January 27th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Ambev in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America lowered shares of Ambev from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Barclays cut 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ambev currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $2.45.

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Ambev Trading Up 5.0 %

Ambev stock traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $2.20. The company's stock had a trading volume of 42,513,980 shares, compared to its average volume of 38,134,809. The stock has a market cap of $34.58 billion, a PE ratio of 12.19, a P/E/G ratio of 5.80 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.20. Ambev S.A. has a one year low of $1.76 and a one year high of $2.58. The company has a 50 day moving average of $1.87 and a 200-day moving average of $2.13.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share (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 net margin of 17.02% and a return on equity of 16.12%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ambev S.A. will post 0.18 EPS for the current year.

Ambev Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.0221 dividend. This represents a $0.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. Ambev's payout ratio is 52.94%.

Ambev Company 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.