Piper Sandler Downgrades Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) to Neutral

Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Piper Sandler currently has $63.00 price objective on the stock, down from their previous price objective of $70.00.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Mondelez International from $78.00 to $71.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Mondelez International from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Mondelez International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $75.00 to $62.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Mondelez International in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $82.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $61.00 target price (down from $74.00) on shares of Mondelez International in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently 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 firm has a fifty day moving average price of $60.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.56, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.54. Mondelez International has a 12-month low of $55.97 and a 12-month high of $77.20.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.82 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Mondelez International will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Mondelez International Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mondelez International

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in Mondelez International during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mondelez International during the third quarter worth $27,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in Mondelez International during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Mondelez International in the third quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.32% of the company’s stock.

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.