Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. Increases Holdings in Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ)

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 197,391 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 12,075 shares during the quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in Mondelez International were worth $11,790,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MDLZ. Czech National Bank boosted its position in Mondelez International by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 289,931 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,318,000 after purchasing an additional 17,815 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. increased its holdings in Mondelez International by 33.2% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 3,841 shares of the company’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 957 shares during the last quarter. Kennedy Investment Group bought a new position in Mondelez International in the fourth quarter worth approximately $313,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its position in shares of Mondelez International by 1,904.9% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 425,805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,369,000 after acquiring an additional 404,567 shares during the period. Finally, Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Mondelez International by 14.3% in the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 114,436 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,430,000 after buying an additional 14,278 shares in the last quarter. 78.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on Mondelez International in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $82.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Mondelez International from $61.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Mondelez International from $76.00 to $63.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. DZ Bank lowered Mondelez International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $52.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on Mondelez International from $78.00 to $71.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.72.

Mondelez International Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of MDLZ stock opened at $58.45 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $78.16 billion, a PE ratio of 17.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.35. Mondelez International, Inc. has a 1 year low of $53.95 and a 1 year high of $76.06.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by ($0.01). Mondelez International had a return on equity of 16.75% and a net margin of 12.68%. Research analysts predict that Mondelez International, Inc. will post 2.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Mondelez International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Mondelez International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.97%.

Mondelez International announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $9.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 10.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Mondelez International Profile

Mondelez International, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and sells snack food and beverage products in the Latin America, North America, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. It provides biscuits and baked snacks, including cookies, crackers, salted snacks, snack bars, and cakes and pastries; chocolates; and gums and candies, as well as various cheese and grocery, and powdered beverage products.