Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI) Insider Luis Viso Sells 1,221 Shares of Stock

The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) insider Luis Viso sold 1,221 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.31, for a total transaction of $133,467.51. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $210,312.44. This represents a 38.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Marzetti Stock Performance

NASDAQ MZTI opened at $111.61 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $122.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $147.58. The Marzetti Company has a 52-week low of $105.80 and a 52-week high of $190.96. The company has a market cap of $3.06 billion, a PE ratio of 17.47 and a beta of 0.33.

Marzetti Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens dropped their price objective on shares of Marzetti from $160.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of Marzetti from $184.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Marzetti from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $169.33.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marzetti

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Marzetti by 94.0% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,106 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after acquiring an additional 536 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in Marzetti by 29.8% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 25,187 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,484,000 after acquiring an additional 5,776 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Marzetti in the first quarter valued at approximately $365,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Marzetti by 144.8% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 45,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,311,000 after acquiring an additional 26,986 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Marzetti in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,548,000. 66.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Marzetti

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.