Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ) gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $58.41, but opened at $57.08. Mondelez International shares last traded at $58.12, with a volume of 921,862 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MDLZ has been the topic of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Mondelez International from $67.00 to $62.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Piper Sandler lowered Mondelez International from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $63.00 in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Mondelez International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $75.00 to $62.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Mondelez International from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Mondelez International from $78.00 to $71.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Mondelez International currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.76.

Mondelez International Trading Down 0.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $77.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.64, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.54. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $60.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.71.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $9.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.11 billion. Mondelez International had a return on equity of 17.53% and a net margin of 10.58%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.82 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Mondelez International, Inc. will post 3.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mondelez International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. Mondelez International’s payout ratio is 66.67%.

Mondelez International declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $9.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 10.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mondelez International by 12,057.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 12,574,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $926,327,000 after purchasing an additional 12,470,573 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of Mondelez International by 2,560.0% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,411,179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,749,000 after buying an additional 3,282,937 shares in the last quarter. Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP bought a new stake in shares of Mondelez International during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $219,045,000. FMR LLC increased its stake in Mondelez International by 14.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,255,657 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,344,894,000 after acquiring an additional 2,268,639 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in Mondelez International during the third quarter valued at approximately $159,823,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.32% of the company’s stock.

About Mondelez International

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.