Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 29,250,000 shares, a decline of 26.5% from the February 28th total of 39,800,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 36,580,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.8 days. Currently, 0.2% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ABEV shares. Barclays reduced their target price on Ambev from $2.50 to $2.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Ambev in a research note 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, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Ambev in a research report on Monday, January 27th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ambev has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $2.45.

Ambev Price Performance

ABEV opened at $2.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.64, a PEG ratio of 5.80 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Ambev has a 12-month low of $1.76 and a 12-month high of $2.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $2.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $2.12.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.06 by ($0.01). Ambev had a return on equity of 16.12% and a net margin of 17.02%. The business had revenue of $4.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.42 billion. Equities analysts predict that Ambev will post 0.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ambev Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.0221 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. Ambev’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.94%.

Institutional Trading of Ambev

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Ambev by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,425,374 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,438,000 after purchasing an additional 878,900 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in shares of Ambev by 132.9% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,976,147 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,822,000 after buying an additional 1,127,719 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ambev by 18.3% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 54,013 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,000 after acquiring an additional 8,350 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its stake in Ambev by 298.1% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 802,016 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,957,000 after acquiring an additional 600,545 shares during the period. Finally, Private Management Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Ambev by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 14,512,234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,848,000 after acquiring an additional 1,083,882 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 8.13% of the company’s stock.

About Ambev

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.