6,751 Shares in The Marzetti Company $MZTI Bought by Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV

Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 6,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $934,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. M&T Bank Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Marzetti in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,118,569,000. Vanguard Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Marzetti during the 4th quarter worth $367,969,000. State Street Corp purchased a new position in Marzetti during the 4th quarter worth $160,722,000. First Trust Advisors LP purchased a new position in Marzetti during the 4th quarter worth $111,778,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Marzetti in the fourth quarter valued at $103,681,000. 66.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Marzetti from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. DA Davidson raised Marzetti to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Stephens dropped their price target on Marzetti from $160.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $169.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Luis Viso sold 1,221 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.31, for a total value of $133,467.51. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 1,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $210,312.44. This trade represents a 38.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 29.10% of the company’s stock.

Marzetti Price Performance

Marzetti stock opened at $114.80 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $112.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $139.96. The Marzetti Company has a 12 month low of $104.28 and a 12 month high of $190.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.15 billion, a PE ratio of 17.97 and a beta of 0.32.

Marzetti Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.60%.

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.