Dearborn Partners LLC Acquires Shares of 6,060 The Marzetti Company $MZTI

Dearborn Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 6,060 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $692,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hamilton Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marzetti during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,350,000. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marzetti in the second quarter worth $2,080,000. Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new stake in shares of Marzetti in the second quarter worth $5,776,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in Marzetti in the second quarter valued at $20,811,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in Marzetti in the second quarter valued at $2,134,000. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marzetti

In other news, insider Luis Viso sold 1,221 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.31, for a total transaction of $133,467.51. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $210,312.44. This represents a 38.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 29.10% of the company’s stock.

Marzetti Trading Up 2.1%

NASDAQ MZTI opened at $114.84 on Friday. The Marzetti Company has a one year low of $104.28 and a one year high of $186.95. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $112.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $126.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a PE ratio of 16.48 and a beta of 0.32.

Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 25th. The company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter. Marzetti had a net margin of 9.93% and a return on equity of 18.22%. The firm had revenue of $465.03 million for the quarter.

Marzetti Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio is 62.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Marzetti in a report on Monday, August 17th. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Marzetti from $168.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of Marzetti in a research report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $135.00.

Marzetti Profile

Lancaster Colony Corporation engages in the manufacturing and marketing of specialty food products for the retail and foodservice channels in the United States. It operates in two segments, Retail and Foodservice. The company offers frozen garlic bread under the New York BRAND Bakery; frozen Parkerhouse style yeast and dinner rolls under the Sister Schubert's brand; salad dressings under the Marzetti, Simply Dressed, Cardini's, and Girard's brands; vegetable and fruit dips under the Marzetti brand; croutons and salad toppings under the New York BRAND Bakery, Chatham Village, and Marzetti brands; and frozen pasta under the Marzetti Frozen Pasta brand.