Zacks Research Upgrades Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) to Hold

Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) was upgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on UTZ. Mizuho set a $14.00 target price on Utz Brands in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Utz Brands from $11.00 to $9.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Bank of America decreased their target price on Utz Brands from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. BTIG Research started coverage on Utz Brands in a research note on Monday, April 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $10.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Utz Brands from $12.00 to $10.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Utz Brands presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.06.

Utz Brands Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of Utz Brands stock traded up $0.19 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $7.74. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 274,492 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,802,847. Utz Brands has a twelve month low of $7.11 and a twelve month high of $14.67. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $8.22 and a 200-day moving average of $9.75. The stock has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 774.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.19.

Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.26. Utz Brands had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 0.06%.The business had revenue of $342.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $346.99 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.22 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. Utz Brands has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.771-0.795 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Utz Brands will post 0.77 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Utz Brands

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of UTZ. NewEdge Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Utz Brands during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd increased its holdings in Utz Brands by 194.8% during the 3rd quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 2,618 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,730 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 2,714 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 2,362 shares during the period. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in Utz Brands by 76.1% during the 2nd 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 period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.97% of the company’s stock.

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.