Ambev’s (ABEV) “Underperform” Rating Reaffirmed at Bank of America

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV)‘s stock had its “underperform” rating restated by equities researchers at Bank of America in a report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $3.30 price objective on the stock. Bank of America‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 3.94% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on ABEV. UBS Group set a $2.85 price target on shares of Ambev in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ambev in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank downgraded shares of Ambev from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ambev has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $3.13.

Ambev Stock Down 1.4%

Ambev stock opened at $3.18 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $50.04 billion, a PE ratio of 15.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $2.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3.04. Ambev has a twelve month low of $2.10 and a twelve month high of $3.45.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.04. Ambev had a net margin of 18.47% and a return on equity of 17.48%. The company had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.05 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Ambev will post 0.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Manuel Moreira sold 468,040 shares of Ambev stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.08, for a total transaction of $1,441,563.20. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,000,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,240,000. This trade represents a 13.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ABEV. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Ambev by 0.7% in the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 349,323,217 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,096,875,000 after buying an additional 2,338,660 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in shares of Ambev by 6.5% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 27,354,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,875,000 after purchasing an additional 1,674,900 shares in the last quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP lifted its position in shares of Ambev by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 22,600,124 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,822,000 after purchasing an additional 874,657 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Ambev by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 9,414,370 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,253,000 after purchasing an additional 67,402 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DJE Kapital AG bought a new stake in shares of Ambev in the first quarter worth $14,778,000. Institutional investors own 8.13% of the company’s stock.

About Ambev

Ambev SA is a Brazilian beverage company and one of the largest brewers in Latin America. The company produces, distributes and sells beer, carbonated soft drinks, nonalcoholic beverages and other drink products through a portfolio that includes brands such as Brahma, Skol, Antarctica, Bohemia, Budweiser, Stella Artois and Guaraná Antarctica.

Founded in 1999 through the merger of Companhia Antarctica Paulista and Companhia Cervejaria Brahma, Ambev became part of Anheuser-Busch InBev following the latter’s combination with Anheuser-Busch in 2008.