Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) Cut to “Hold” at Argus

Argus lowered shares of Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Friday morning, Marketbeat reports.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on MDLZ. Citigroup decreased their target price on Mondelez International from $78.00 to $71.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Mondelez International from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Mondelez International from $61.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Mondelez International from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $70.00 to $63.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Mondelez International from $69.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.74.

Mondelez International Trading Up 4.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ MDLZ opened at $64.70 on Friday. Mondelez International has a fifty-two week low of $53.95 and a fifty-two week high of $76.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.92, a P/E/G ratio of 4.34 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 0.48. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $58.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $65.87.

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

Mondelez International declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $9.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 10.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Mondelez International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. Mondelez International’s payout ratio is currently 54.97%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mondelez International

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Aurdan Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Mondelez International in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,745,000. Perennial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Mondelez International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,785,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Mondelez International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $74,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Mondelez International by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,010,884 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,380,000 after acquiring an additional 76,797 shares during the period. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Mondelez International by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 13,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $778,000 after acquiring an additional 634 shares during the last quarter. 78.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.