Squarepoint Ops LLC Sells 49,354 Shares of Utz Brands, Inc. $UTZ

Squarepoint Ops LLC decreased its position in Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ) by 22.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 174,364 shares of the company’s stock after selling 49,354 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Utz Brands worth $2,188,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Utz Brands in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of Utz Brands by 37.6% during the second quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 5,481 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 1,497 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. raised its holdings in Utz Brands by 16.1% in the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 7,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,000 after acquiring an additional 1,023 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its position in Utz Brands by 505.6% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 10,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $137,000 after acquiring an additional 9,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in Utz Brands by 79.6% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 11,088 shares of the company’s stock valued at $139,000 after acquiring an additional 4,914 shares in the last quarter. 95.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Series R. Of Um Partners, Llc acquired 12,420 shares of Utz Brands stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $9.60 per share, for a total transaction of $119,232.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 628,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,034,502.40. This trade represents a 2.02% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Howard A. Friedman bought 7,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $10.58 per share, for a total transaction of $76,176.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 66,298 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $701,432.84. This represents a 12.18% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders acquired a total of 92,313 shares of company stock valued at $947,055 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 16.32% of the company’s stock.

Utz Brands Trading Down 2.9%

Shares of NYSE:UTZ opened at $10.39 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $12.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 148.43, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.93. Utz Brands, Inc. has a 52-week low of $9.19 and a 52-week high of $16.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.22.

Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.23. The firm had revenue of $377.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $374.25 million. Utz Brands had a net margin of 0.39% and a return on equity of 8.12%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.21 EPS. Utz Brands has set its FY 2025 guidance at 0.824-0.847 EPS. Analysts expect that Utz Brands, Inc. will post 0.85 EPS for the current year.

Utz Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.063 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. This is a boost from Utz Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. Utz Brands’s dividend payout ratio is 357.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UTZ has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Utz Brands from $19.00 to $15.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 21st. Mizuho set a $16.00 price objective on Utz Brands in a report on Monday, November 3rd. UBS Group decreased their target price on Utz Brands from $13.50 to $11.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Utz Brands in a report on Monday. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $14.00 price target on shares of Utz Brands in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $14.93.

Utz Brands Profile

Utz Brands, Inc engages in manufacture, marketing, and distribution of snack foods. It offers a range of salty snacks, including salty snacks, including potato chips, tortilla chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, pork skins, veggie snacks, pub/party mixes, tortilla chips, salsa and dips, ready-to-eat popcorn, and other snacks under the Utz, Zapp’s, ON THE BORDER, Golden Flake, Boulder Canyon, Hawaiian, TORTIYAHS!, etc.