Analysts Set Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ) Target Price at $69.70

Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have assigned a hold recommendation and fourteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $69.50.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MDLZ. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Mondelez International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $75.00 to $62.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Mondelez International in a research report on Monday, March 24th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $69.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Mondelez International from $75.00 to $69.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Mondelez International from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Mondelez International from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mondelez International

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MDLZ. United Bank boosted its position in Mondelez International by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 22,649 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,669,000 after acquiring an additional 2,549 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mondelez International during the third quarter valued at about $615,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Mondelez International by 82.7% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,811 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,000 after purchasing an additional 1,272 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in Mondelez International by 11.6% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 249,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,349,000 after buying an additional 25,833 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC increased its stake in Mondelez International by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC now owns 12,280 shares of the company’s stock valued at $905,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the period. 78.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mondelez International Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of MDLZ stock opened at $67.72 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $87.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.80, a PEG ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $62.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.81. Mondelez International has a twelve month low of $53.95 and a twelve month high of $76.06.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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%. Research analysts forecast that Mondelez International will post 2.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mondelez International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Mondelez International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.97%.

Mondelez International announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $9.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 10.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.