Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Has $76.87 Million Stake in The Marzetti Company $MZTI

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) by 1.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 555,702 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,671 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 2.03% of Marzetti worth $76,873,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MZTI. KBC Group NV grew its position in Marzetti by 3,214.6% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 23,998 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,320,000 after acquiring an additional 23,274 shares during the last quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Marzetti in the 1st quarter valued at $412,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its position in Marzetti by 25.8% in the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 11,116 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,538,000 after purchasing an additional 2,278 shares during the last quarter. Three Seasons Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Marzetti in the first quarter worth $799,000. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its stake in Marzetti by 2.1% in the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 4,932 shares of the company’s stock worth $682,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marzetti Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MZTI opened at $106.87 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.72 and a beta of 0.32. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $110.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $134.00. The Marzetti Company has a 52-week low of $104.28 and a 52-week high of $190.96.

Marzetti Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Marzetti’s payout ratio is presently 62.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Luis Viso sold 1,221 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.31, for a total transaction of $133,467.51. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $210,312.44. This represents a 38.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 29.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MZTI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut Marzetti from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. DA Davidson raised shares of Marzetti to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Stephens lowered their price objective on shares of Marzetti from $160.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $169.33.

Marzetti Company Profile

Lancaster Colony Corporation engages in the manufacturing and marketing of specialty food products for the retail and foodservice channels in the United States. It operates in two segments, Retail and Foodservice. The company offers frozen garlic bread under the New York BRAND Bakery; frozen Parkerhouse style yeast and dinner rolls under the Sister Schubert's brand; salad dressings under the Marzetti, Simply Dressed, Cardini's, and Girard's brands; vegetable and fruit dips under the Marzetti brand; croutons and salad toppings under the New York BRAND Bakery, Chatham Village, and Marzetti brands; and frozen pasta under the Marzetti Frozen Pasta brand.