Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) Cut to “Neutral” at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler lowered shares of Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research report released on Friday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $63.00 price objective on the stock, down from their prior price objective of $70.00.

MDLZ has been the subject of a number of other reports. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Mondelez International from $76.00 to $63.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Mondelez International from $78.00 to $71.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Redburn Atlantic assumed 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. Jefferies Financial Group cut Mondelez International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $62.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Mondelez International from $67.00 to $62.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.76.

Mondelez International Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of MDLZ opened at $57.99 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $60.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.67. Mondelez International has a 1 year low of $55.97 and a 1 year high of $77.20.

Mondelez International announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $9.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 10.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mondelez International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Mondelez International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mondelez International

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MDLZ. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mondelez International in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Mondelez International during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new position in Mondelez International during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in Mondelez International by 100.0% during the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 400 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Mondelez International during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. 78.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mondelez International Company 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.