Earnest Partners LLC Trims Stake in Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV)

Earnest Partners LLC lowered its position in Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 878,803 shares of the company’s stock after selling 39,645 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC’s holdings in Ambev were worth $1,802,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its holdings in Ambev by 5.2% in the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 8,545,370 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,270,000 after purchasing an additional 423,792 shares in the last quarter. Kiltearn Partners LLP grew its position in shares of Ambev by 234.8% in the 4th quarter. Kiltearn Partners LLP now owns 5,868,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,431,000 after buying an additional 4,115,300 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of Ambev by 14.0% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 9,093,184 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,551,000 after acquiring an additional 1,114,392 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in Ambev by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 70,787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $176,000 after acquiring an additional 5,767 shares during the period. Finally, Perpetual Ltd boosted its stake in Ambev by 10.1% during the first quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 65,003,922 shares of the company’s stock worth $161,210,000 after acquiring an additional 5,943,974 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 8.13% of the company’s stock.

Ambev Price Performance

NYSE ABEV opened at $2.40 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $37.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.63, a PEG ratio of 5.23 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $2.28 and a 200 day moving average of $2.28. Ambev S.A. has a one year low of $2.01 and a one year high of $3.00.

Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.56 billion. Ambev had a net margin of 17.93% and a return on equity of 16.94%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.03 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ambev S.A. will post 0.17 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on ABEV shares. StockNews.com cut Ambev from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Ambev from $3.20 to $2.90 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $2.75.

Ambev Company Profile

Ambev SA, through its subsidiaries, engages in the production, distribution, and sale of beer, draft beer, carbonated soft drinks, malt and food, other alcoholic beverages, and non-alcoholic and non-carbonated products in Brazil, Central America and Caribbean, Latin America South, and Canada. It offers beer primarily under the Skol, Brahma, Antarctica, Brahva, Budweiser, Bud Light, Beck, Leffe, Hoegaarden, Balboa ICE, Balboa, Atlas Golden Light, Atlas, Bucanero, Cristal, Mayabe, Presidente, Presidente Light, Brahma Light, Bohemia, The One, Corona, Modelo Especial, Stella Artois, Quilmes Clásica, Paceña, Taquiña, Huari, Becker, Cusqueña, Michelob Ultra, Busch, Pilsen, Ouro Fino, Bud 66, Banks, Deputy, Patricia, Labatt Blue, Alexander Keith’s, and Kokanee brands.