Bank of America Reaffirms Underperform Rating for Ambev (NYSE:ABEV)

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV)‘s stock had its “underperform” rating reissued by equities researchers at Bank of America in a research report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have a $3.30 price objective on the stock. Bank of America‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 3.61% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on ABEV. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ambev from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 22nd. Scotiabank lowered Ambev from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. UBS Group set a $2.85 price target on shares of Ambev in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ambev in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ambev presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $3.13.

Ambev Stock Up 1.1%

Ambev stock opened at $3.19 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $50.20 billion, a PE ratio of 15.92, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.58. Ambev has a 12-month low of $2.10 and a 12-month high of $3.45. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $2.96 and its 200 day moving average is $3.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04. The business had revenue of $3.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.05 billion. Ambev had a net margin of 18.47% and a return on equity of 17.48%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ambev will post 0.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ambev

In related news, Director Manuel Moreira sold 468,040 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.08, for a total transaction of $1,441,563.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 3,000,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,240,000. This represents a 13.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Prado Carla Smith De Va Crippa sold 60,757 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.09, for a total value of $187,739.13. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 80,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $249,384.63. The trade was a 42.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ambev

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ABEV. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA increased its position in Ambev by 2.2% in the first quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA now owns 173,886 shares of the company’s stock worth $508,000 after buying an additional 3,702 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ambev by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 62,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $183,000 after acquiring an additional 4,121 shares during the period. Waverly Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Ambev by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 349,336 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,097,000 after acquiring an additional 4,437 shares during the last quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Ambev by 26.7% in the 2nd quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 23,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 4,941 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wynn Capital LLC raised its stake in Ambev by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 150,285 shares of the company’s stock valued at $472,000 after acquiring an additional 5,420 shares during the period. 8.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ambev Company Profile

Ambev SA is a Brazilian beverage company and one of the largest brewers in Latin America. The company produces, distributes and sells beer, carbonated soft drinks, nonalcoholic beverages and other drink products through a portfolio that includes brands such as Brahma, Skol, Antarctica, Bohemia, Budweiser, Stella Artois and Guaraná Antarctica.

Founded in 1999 through the merger of Companhia Antarctica Paulista and Companhia Cervejaria Brahma, Ambev became part of Anheuser-Busch InBev following the latter’s combination with Anheuser-Busch in 2008.