First Merchants Corp Increases Stake in Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ)

First Merchants Corp boosted its stake in Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ) by 31.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 22,444 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,369 shares during the period. First Merchants Corp’s holdings in Mondelez International were worth $1,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MDLZ. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mondelez International by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 99,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,926,000 after purchasing an additional 7,342 shares during the period. Aries Wealth Management raised its holdings in Mondelez International by 15.3% in the fourth quarter. Aries Wealth Management now owns 10,801 shares of the company’s stock worth $645,000 after purchasing an additional 1,435 shares in the last quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Mondelez International by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 28,491 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,702,000 after purchasing an additional 1,629 shares in the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Mondelez International during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Naples Global Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mondelez International by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 3,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $232,000 after buying an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. 78.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Mondelez International from $69.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Mondelez International in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $82.00 target price for the company. Dbs Bank cut Mondelez International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Mondelez International from $76.00 to $63.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on Mondelez International from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mondelez International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.72.

Mondelez International Price Performance

MDLZ opened at $61.16 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $59.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.22. Mondelez International, Inc. has a 52-week low of $53.95 and a 52-week high of $76.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.88, a P/E/G ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.68.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) last issued 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%. As a group, analysts predict that Mondelez International, Inc. will post 2.9 EPS for the current year.

Mondelez International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Mondelez International’s payout ratio is currently 54.97%.

Mondelez International declared that its board 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 reacquire up to 10.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.