Merit Financial Group LLC Sells 8,515 Shares of Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ)

Merit Financial Group LLC cut its stake in Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ) by 14.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 49,516 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,515 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Mondelez International were worth $2,958,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in Mondelez International during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Mondelez International in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew 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 valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Mondelez International during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Mondelez International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. 78.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on MDLZ. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Mondelez International from $79.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Mondelez International from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Mondelez International from $79.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Mondelez International from $78.00 to $71.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Mondelez International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $78.00 to $67.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.93.

Mondelez International Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of MDLZ stock opened at $57.86 on Monday. 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 has a 50-day moving average of $61.59 and a 200 day moving average of $67.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.37 billion, a PE ratio of 20.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.54. Mondelez International, Inc. has a 1-year low of $55.97 and a 1-year high of $77.20.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.14. Mondelez International had a net margin of 10.58% and a return on equity of 17.53%. The firm had revenue of $9.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.82 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mondelez International, Inc. will post 3.48 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Mondelez International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Mondelez International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.67%.

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.