6,615 Shares in The Marzetti Company $MZTI Bought by Virtu Financial LLC

Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 6,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,088,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC bought a new stake in Marzetti during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Marzetti during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marzetti in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Marzetti in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Marzetti in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Marzetti Price Performance

Marzetti stock opened at $107.06 on Monday. The Marzetti Company has a 52-week low of $104.58 and a 52-week high of $190.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.75 and a beta of 0.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $118.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $145.34.

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 given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Marzetti’s payout ratio is currently 62.60%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Luis Viso sold 1,221 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.31, for a total value of $133,467.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $210,312.44. This represents a 38.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 29.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stephens lowered their price objective on shares of Marzetti from $160.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Marzetti from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their target price on Marzetti from $184.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Marzetti has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $169.33.

Marzetti 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.