Vanguard Group Inc. Purchases Shares of 2,237,979 The Marzetti Company $MZTI

Vanguard Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 2,237,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $367,969,000. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 0.08% of Marzetti at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Retirement Systems of Alabama bought a new stake in shares of Marzetti during the 4th quarter worth about $4,014,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Marzetti during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,226,000. Boston Trust Walden Corp bought a new stake in shares of Marzetti during the fourth quarter worth approximately $43,355,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky acquired a new position in shares of Marzetti in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $598,000. Finally, M&T Bank Corp bought a new position in shares of Marzetti during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,118,569,000. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MZTI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Marzetti from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. Stephens reduced their target price 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. DA Davidson lowered their price target on shares of Marzetti from $184.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Marzetti in a report on Friday, January 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $169.33.

Marzetti Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MZTI opened at $117.56 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.40 and a beta of 0.38. The Marzetti Company has a 1 year low of $111.04 and a 1 year high of $190.96. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $143.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $158.10.

Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $509.77 million for the quarter. Marzetti had a return on equity of 18.12% and a net margin of 9.06%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Marzetti Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.26%.

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.