Dean Capital Management Makes New $1.28 Million Investment in The Marzetti Company $MZTI

Dean Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 9,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,282,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in Marzetti during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Marzetti in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marzetti during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Marzetti in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Marzetti in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. 66.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marzetti Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MZTI opened at $107.19 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $2.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.77 and a beta of 0.32. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $110.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $135.81. The Marzetti Company has a 52-week low of $104.28 and a 52-week high of $190.96.

Marzetti Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 3.7%. Marzetti’s payout ratio is presently 62.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Luis Viso sold 1,221 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $210,312.44. This represents a 38.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 29.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Stephens dropped their price objective on Marzetti from $160.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Marzetti from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, DA Davidson raised shares of Marzetti to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Marzetti presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $169.33.

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.