Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. Acquires 21,000 Shares of Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ)

Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE:UTZ) by 33.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 84,000 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,000 shares during the quarter. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. owned 0.06% of Utz Brands worth $1,315,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in Utz Brands by 18.0% during the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 22,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $349,000 after buying an additional 3,400 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Utz Brands during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Truist Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Utz Brands by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 26,917 shares of the company’s stock worth $422,000 after purchasing an additional 2,667 shares during the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its holdings in shares of Utz Brands by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 126,532 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,981,000 after purchasing an additional 9,988 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Utz Brands by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 95,103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,489,000 after purchasing an additional 1,757 shares during the last quarter. 95.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on UTZ shares. Barclays lowered their target price on Utz Brands from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Utz Brands from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Utz Brands from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Utz Brands from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $20.00.

Utz Brands Price Performance

Shares of Utz Brands stock opened at $13.47 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $1.90 billion, a PE ratio of -70.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Utz Brands, Inc. has a 12-month low of $12.71 and a 12-month high of $20.04.

Utz Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.061 per share. This is a positive change from Utz Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.81%. Utz Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently -126.32%.

Utz Brands Company Profile

Utz Brands, Inc engages in manufacture, marketing, and distribution of snack foods. It offers a range of salty snacks, including salty snacks, including potato chips, tortilla chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, pork skins, veggie snacks, pub/party mixes, tortilla chips, salsa and dips, ready-to-eat popcorn, and other snacks under the Utz, Zapp’s, ON THE BORDER, Golden Flake, Boulder Canyon, Hawaiian, TORTIYAHS!, etc.