ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. Buys 2,288 Shares of Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ)

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDLZ) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 586,987 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,288 shares during the period. Mondelez International accounts for 2.2% of ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Mondelez International were worth $42,516,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MDLZ. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in shares of Mondelez International during the first quarter valued at $100,000. United Bank lifted its position in Mondelez International by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. United Bank now owns 27,006 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,695,000 after purchasing an additional 1,189 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Mondelez International by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 28,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,782,000 after purchasing an additional 1,085 shares during the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Mondelez International in the 1st quarter valued at about $561,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of Mondelez International by 69.0% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,269 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 518 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.32% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Mondelez International from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Mondelez International from $82.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Mondelez International from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Mondelez International from $84.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on Mondelez International from $87.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mondelez International presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.89.

Mondelez International Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MDLZ traded up $0.94 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $68.11. The company had a trading volume of 11,016,995 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,630,542. Mondelez International, Inc. has a 1-year low of $60.75 and a 1-year high of $78.59. The stock has a market cap of $91.71 billion, a PE ratio of 18.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $70.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $70.44.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.06. Mondelez International had a return on equity of 15.91% and a net margin of 13.77%. The firm had revenue of $9.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.31 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.73 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Mondelez International, Inc. will post 3.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mondelez International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a dividend of $0.425 per share. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Mondelez International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.83%.

About Mondelez International

Mondelez International, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and sells snack food and beverage products in the Latin America, North America, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. It provides biscuits and baked snacks, including cookies, crackers, salted snacks, snack bars, and cakes and pastries; chocolates; and gums and candies, as well as various cheese and grocery, and powdered beverage products.