Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ) Stock Position Decreased by GW&K Investment Management LLC

GW&K Investment Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ) by 9.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,053,907 shares of the company’s stock after selling 112,992 shares during the quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Utz Brands were worth $17,116,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of UTZ. Trexquant Investment LP purchased a new position in Utz Brands during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,345,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in Utz Brands by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 855,338 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,891,000 after buying an additional 6,258 shares during the period. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in Utz Brands by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 603,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,802,000 after acquiring an additional 8,936 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Utz Brands by 11.5% during the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 455,946 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,405,000 after acquiring an additional 46,919 shares during the period. Finally, Gratus Capital LLC boosted its position in Utz Brands by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Gratus Capital LLC now owns 552,370 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,970,000 after acquiring an additional 70,755 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UTZ has been the subject of several research reports. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Utz Brands from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on shares of Utz Brands from $20.50 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Utz Brands from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Truist Financial upped their target price on Utz Brands from $13.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, DA Davidson began coverage on Utz Brands in a report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $20.00 price target for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Utz Brands presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.42.

Insider Transactions at Utz Brands

In other news, Director Roger K. Deromedi sold 13,377 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.04, for a total value of $254,698.08. Following the sale, the director now owns 3,426,970 shares in the company, valued at $65,249,508.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, major shareholder Series U. Of Um Partners, Llc sold 397,885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.76, for a total value of $7,464,322.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Roger K. Deromedi sold 13,377 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.04, for a total value of $254,698.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,426,970 shares in the company, valued at $65,249,508.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,049,656 shares of company stock worth $19,064,588 over the last three months. 17.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Utz Brands Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UTZ traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $18.25. 56,288 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 798,508. Utz Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $11.17 and a one year high of $20.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The company’s 50 day moving average is $18.13 and its 200 day moving average is $16.76.

Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $346.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $346.99 million. Utz Brands had a positive return on equity of 6.16% and a negative net margin of 1.38%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.11 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Utz Brands, Inc. will post 0.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Utz Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th were given a $0.059 dividend. This is an increase from Utz Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 12th. Utz Brands’s payout ratio is currently -96.00%.

Utz Brands Profile

Utz Brands, Inc engages in manufacture, marketing, and distribution of snack foods. It offers a range of salty snacks, including salty snacks, including potato chips, tortilla chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, pork skins, veggie snacks, pub/party mixes, tortilla chips, salsa and dips, ready-to-eat popcorn, and other snacks under the Utz, Zapp's, ON THE BORDER, Golden Flake, Boulder Canyon, Hawaiian, TORTIYAHS!, etc.