Jennison Associates LLC Reduces Stock Position in Utz Brands, Inc. $UTZ

Jennison Associates LLC cut its holdings in Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ) by 23.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,393,133 shares of the company’s stock after selling 437,091 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Utz Brands were worth $11,034,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of UTZ. NewEdge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Utz Brands during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Utz Brands by 431.5% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 3,343 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 2,714 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Utz Brands by 118.5% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,356 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 2,362 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in Utz Brands by 76.1% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 3,756 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,623 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd lifted its stake in Utz Brands by 134.0% during the fourth quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 6,125 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 3,507 shares during the last quarter. 95.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of Utz Brands in a research note on Monday, April 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $10.00 price target on the stock. Stephens set a $14.25 price objective on shares of Utz Brands in a research report on Tuesday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Utz Brands from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $15.00 target price on shares of Utz Brands in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $14.00 price target on shares of Utz Brands in a research note on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.77.

Utz Brands News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Utz Brands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Utz Brands agreed to be acquired by Intersnack in a $2.9 billion all-cash transaction at $14.25 per share, giving shareholders a large premium and sending the stock higher. Utz Brands to Be Taken Private in $2.9 Billion Deal
• Positive Sentiment: The buyout removes deal risk for now and signals Intersnack sees value in Utz’s brands and North American snack distribution, which can support investor confidence in the transaction closing. Utz Brands to be acquired by Intersnack Group in $2.9B transaction
• Neutral Sentiment: Barclays and Stephens reaffirmed “equal weight” ratings, with one price target near the deal price, but the takeover announcement has overshadowed the analyst notes. Benzinga coverage
• Negative Sentiment: A shareholder-law investigation has been launched to examine whether public investors are getting a fair price, which could create additional scrutiny and potential delays. Shareholder Alert

Utz Brands Stock Up 89.3%

Shares of NYSE UTZ opened at $14.11 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $2.03 billion, a PE ratio of -141.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Utz Brands, Inc. has a 52-week low of $6.78 and a 52-week high of $14.67. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $7.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $8.38.

Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $361.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $361.76 million. Utz Brands had a positive return on equity of 8.61% and a negative net margin of 0.58%.The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.16 earnings per share. Utz Brands has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.771-0.795 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Utz Brands, Inc. will post 0.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Utz Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 22nd were issued a $0.063 dividend. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 22nd. Utz Brands’s payout ratio is presently -250.00%.

About Utz Brands

Utz Brands, Inc is a leading U.S. manufacturer and distributor of salty snack foods, offering a wide range of products including potato chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, popcorn and tortilla chips. Headquartered in Hanover, Pennsylvania, the company markets its snacks under several well-known brands and serves grocery, mass merchandise, club, convenience and online retailers throughout the United States.

Founded in 1921 by Bill and Salie Utz as a small country store operation, the business expanded gradually through direct delivery to local customers and sales to regional grocers.