Zacks Research Raises Earnings Estimates for Flowers Foods

Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO) – Analysts at Zacks Research raised their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Flowers Foods in a report released on Thursday, December 19th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of $1.28 for the year, up from their previous forecast of $1.26. The consensus estimate for Flowers Foods’ current full-year earnings is $1.27 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Flowers Foods’ Q4 2024 earnings at $0.21 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.40 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.35 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.32 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.23 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $1.30 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $0.43 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.36 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $0.34 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $1.37 EPS.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 8th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.03. Flowers Foods had a net margin of 4.70% and a return on equity of 19.41%. The company had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.29 earnings per share. Flowers Foods’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year.

Separately, StockNews.com cut Flowers Foods from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday.

Flowers Foods Stock Performance

Flowers Foods stock opened at $20.40 on Monday. Flowers Foods has a fifty-two week low of $20.21 and a fifty-two week high of $26.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market cap of $4.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.37. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $22.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $22.44.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Flowers Foods

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cooke & Bieler LP lifted its position in Flowers Foods by 73.1% in the second quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 5,301,518 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,694,000 after purchasing an additional 2,239,592 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Flowers Foods by 65.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,314,556 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,104,000 after buying an additional 520,661 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Flowers Foods during the 2nd quarter valued at $10,392,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Flowers Foods by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,159,076 shares of the company’s stock valued at $95,971,000 after buying an additional 259,216 shares during the period. Finally, Ceredex Value Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Flowers Foods by 85.4% in the 3rd quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC now owns 540,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,460,000 after acquiring an additional 248,800 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.45% of the company’s stock.

Flowers Foods Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.71%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Flowers Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 84.21%.

Flowers Foods Company Profile

Flowers Foods, Inc produces and markets packaged bakery food products in the United States. Its principal products include fresh breads, buns, rolls, snack items, bagels, English muffins, and tortillas, as well as frozen breads and rolls under the Nature's Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder, Canyon Bakehouse, Mrs.