Magnetar Financial LLC Boosts Stake in Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ)

Magnetar Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ) by 355.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 70,307 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 54,864 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC’s holdings in Mondelez International were worth $4,199,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Mondelez International by 430.0% during the fourth quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 92,413 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,520,000 after purchasing an additional 74,975 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Mondelez International by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 289,931 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,318,000 after purchasing an additional 17,815 shares during the last quarter. Buckingham Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mondelez International by 25.5% during the fourth quarter. Buckingham Capital Management Inc. now owns 93,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,578,000 after purchasing an additional 18,961 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. raised its holdings in shares of Mondelez International by 33.2% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 3,841 shares of the company’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 957 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kennedy Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Mondelez International during the fourth quarter worth $313,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.32% of the company’s stock.

Mondelez International Stock Performance

MDLZ opened at $63.95 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $82.72 billion, a PE ratio of 18.70, a PEG ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.50. Mondelez International, Inc. has a twelve month low of $53.95 and a twelve month high of $76.06. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $61.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $65.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by ($0.01). Mondelez International had a return on equity of 16.75% and a net margin of 12.68%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Mondelez International, Inc. will post 2.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mondelez International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.94%. Mondelez International’s payout ratio is 54.97%.

Mondelez International declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $9.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 10.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Mondelez International from $61.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Mondelez International from $75.00 to $69.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Piper Sandler cut shares of Mondelez International from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $70.00 to $63.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Mondelez International from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Mondelez International from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.74.

About Mondelez International

Mondelez International, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and sells snack food and beverage products in the Latin America, North America, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. It provides biscuits and baked snacks, including cookies, crackers, salted snacks, snack bars, and cakes and pastries; chocolates; and gums and candies, as well as various cheese and grocery, and powdered beverage products.