Mondelez International Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:MDLZ)

Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Investors bought 6,591 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 88% compared to the typical daily volume of 3,503 put options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mondelez International

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MDLZ. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Mondelez International by 35.5% in the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 645 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management lifted its position in Mondelez International by 3.5% during the first quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 5,073 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Leo Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Mondelez International by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Leo Wealth LLC now owns 7,495 shares of the company’s stock valued at $403,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings in Mondelez International by 0.6% in the first quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC now owns 29,284 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,688,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co grew its holdings in Mondelez International by 2.1% in the first quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 8,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $515,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. 78.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mondelez International Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MDLZ opened at $60.52 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $60.88 and a 200 day moving average of $59.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $77.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.39. Mondelez International has a 52 week low of $51.20 and a 52 week high of $70.61.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.06. Mondelez International had a return on equity of 14.14% and a net margin of 6.64%.The business had revenue of $10.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.76 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Mondelez International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.920-3.060 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Mondelez International will post 3.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mondelez International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Mondelez International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 99.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MDLZ has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Mondelez International from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of Mondelez International in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Mondelez International in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Freedom Capital lowered shares of Mondelez International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Mondelez International from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mondelez International currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.44.

Mondelez International Company Profile

Mondelez International is a global snacks company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, formed in 2012 when Kraft Foods split to create a business focused on snack foods and a separate North American grocery company. Mondelez develops, manufactures, markets and distributes a broad portfolio of snack products intended for retail, foodservice and e‑commerce channels around the world.

The company’s product mix centers on biscuits and cookies, chocolate and confectionery, gum and candy, and savory crackers and baked snacks.