Federated Hermes Inc. Has $534,000 Stock Holdings in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO)

Federated Hermes Inc. lowered its holdings in Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) by 16.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,704 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,635 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Flowers Foods were worth $534,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FLO. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Flowers Foods by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 18,547 shares of the company’s stock worth $411,000 after purchasing an additional 931 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in Flowers Foods by 13.4% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 75,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,684,000 after acquiring an additional 8,958 shares during the period. Mastrapasqua Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Flowers Foods by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Mastrapasqua Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $217,000 after acquiring an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. AM Investment Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Flowers Foods by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. AM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 11,706 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 805 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in shares of Flowers Foods by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 40,605 shares of the company’s stock worth $901,000 after purchasing an additional 4,996 shares in the last quarter. 75.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Flowers Foods Price Performance

FLO opened at $24.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.37. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $23.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.56. Flowers Foods, Inc. has a one year low of $19.64 and a one year high of $29.10.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.20. The company had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.13 billion. Flowers Foods had a return on equity of 18.15% and a net margin of 2.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.23 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Flowers Foods, Inc. will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Flowers Foods Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.70%. Flowers Foods’s payout ratio is presently 158.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Flowers Foods

In other Flowers Foods news, insider Terry S. Thomas sold 36,577 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.11, for a total value of $845,294.47. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 42,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $987,721.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Edward J. Jr. Casey acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $23.55 per share, for a total transaction of $117,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 20,330 shares in the company, valued at $478,771.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Terry S. Thomas sold 36,577 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.11, for a total value of $845,294.47. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $987,721.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 11.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Flowers Foods from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of Flowers Foods in a report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $24.00 price objective for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $24.00.

Flowers Foods Company Profile

Flowers Foods, Inc produces and markets packaged bakery food products in the United States. Its principal products include fresh breads, buns, rolls, snack items, bagels, English muffins, and tortillas, as well as frozen breads and rolls under the Nature's Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder, Canyon Bakehouse, Mrs.