Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Stake in Weis Markets, Inc. (NYSE:WMK)

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Weis Markets, Inc. (NYSE:WMK) by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,807,956 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 9,636 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc.’s holdings in Weis Markets were worth $113,901,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Weis Markets by 1.4% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 343,218 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,512,000 after acquiring an additional 4,667 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in Weis Markets by 15.2% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,163 shares of the company’s stock worth $154,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in Weis Markets by 31.8% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 8,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $584,000 after purchasing an additional 1,974 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Weis Markets by 27.9% in the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 28,084 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,006,000 after buying an additional 6,121 shares during the period. Finally, Aviva PLC bought a new position in shares of Weis Markets during the 1st quarter worth $1,440,000.

Weis Markets Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:WMK opened at $62.73 on Thursday. Weis Markets, Inc. has a 12-month low of $58.75 and a 12-month high of $86.67. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $62.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.08.

Weis Markets (NYSE:WMK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter. Weis Markets had a return on equity of 7.69% and a net margin of 2.21%. The company had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter.

Weis Markets Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 19th were given a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. Weis Markets’s payout ratio is currently 35.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WMK. TheStreet raised shares of Weis Markets from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Weis Markets from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 7th.

About Weis Markets

Weis Markets, Inc engages in the retail sale of food through a chain of supermarkets in Pennsylvania and surrounding states. The company's retail food stores sell groceries, dairy products, frozen foods, meats, seafood, fresh produce, floral, pharmacy services, deli products, prepared foods, bakery products, beer and wine, and fuel; and general merchandise items, such as health and beauty care, and household products.