Vaughan David Investments LLC IL Boosts Holdings in Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ)

Vaughan David Investments LLC IL raised its holdings in shares of Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 556,951 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,658 shares during the quarter. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL’s holdings in Mondelez International were worth $33,267,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MDLZ. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mondelez International by 12,057.4% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 12,574,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $926,327,000 after buying an additional 12,470,573 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Mondelez International by 2,560.0% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,411,179 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,749,000 after buying an additional 3,282,937 shares in the last quarter. Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Mondelez International during the third quarter worth about $219,045,000. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mondelez International by 14.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,255,657 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,344,894,000 after buying an additional 2,268,639 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in Mondelez International in the third quarter valued at approximately $159,823,000. 78.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mondelez International Stock Up 1.1 %

Mondelez International stock opened at $65.36 on Tuesday. Mondelez International, Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.95 and a 1-year high of $76.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.54. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $59.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $65.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.66 by ($0.01). Mondelez International had a return on equity of 16.75% and a net margin of 12.68%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Mondelez International, Inc. will post 2.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mondelez International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Mondelez International’s payout ratio is 54.97%.

Mondelez International declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $9.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 10.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MDLZ. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of Mondelez International from $67.00 to $62.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Argus cut shares of Mondelez International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Dbs Bank downgraded shares of Mondelez International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Mondelez International from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Mondelez International from $75.00 to $69.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.74.

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.