UTZ Brands (UTZ) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $1.87B
• Dividend Yield: 1.8%
• Average Volume (3M): 1.25M
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 70.6
• Beta (1Y): 0.20
• Revenue Growth: -2.01%
• EPS Growth: N/A
• Country: US
• Employees: 3,000
• Sector: Consumer Defensive
• Sector Strength: 94
• Industry: Packaged Foods
• EPS (TTM): 0.18
• Shares Outstanding: 86,061,750
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 1,265,090
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 1,254,658
• PEG Ratio: N/A
• Price to Book (P/B): N/A
• Price to Sales (P/S): 1.38
• Price to Cash Flow (P/CF): 9.00
• P/FCF Ratio: 27.10
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: N/A
• 1Y Price Target: $18.29
• Price Target Upside: 38.56% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Strong Buy
• Number of Analyst Covering: 8

UTZ Brands demonstrates solid financial performance and positive future guidance, supported by strategic initiatives and leadership changes. However, high valuation and technical indicators suggest caution, with potential risks in market trends and channel challenges. The stock's overall score reflects a balanced view of these factors.

Positive Factors

Cost Management

Management increased the 2026 target for cumulative cost savings from $135M to $150M after exceeding their target in 2024.

Market Expansion

Power 4 Brands outpaced salty category including strength across key 'expansion markets' as core markets remained softer.

Market Share and Distribution

UTZ expects to gain market share, driven by continued distribution gains and increased marketing support.

Negative Factors

Category Pressures

A challenged salty backdrop with ongoing category pressures raises concerns on salty snacks' durability.

Organic Growth Alignment

Flattish volumes with price reinvestment needs do not align with management's organic growth guidance.

Sales Performance

Q4's headline revenue miss was disappointing due to expected contribution from new distribution being obscured by increased pressure from non-branded/non-salty business.

UTZ Brands Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

Utz Brands, Inc. operates as a snack food manufacturing company. It offers a range of salty snacks, including potato chips, kettle chips, tortilla chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, veggie snacks, pork skins, pub/party mixes, salsa and queso, ready-to-eat popcorn, and other snacks under the Utz, Zapp's, ON THE BORDER, Golden Flake, Good Health, Boulder Canyon, Hawaiian, TGIF, TORTIYAHS!, and other brand names. The company distributes its products to grocery, mass, club, convenience, drug, and other retailers though direct shipments, distributors, and direct store delivery routes. Utz Brands, Inc. was founded in 1921 and is headquartered in Hanover, Pennsylvania.

How the Company Makes Money

UTZ Brands generates revenue through the manufacturing and sale of its snack food products. The company's primary revenue stream comes from distributing its products to a variety of retail partners, including supermarkets, convenience stores, and mass merchandisers. Additionally, UTZ benefits from partnerships with private label brands and produces snacks under various brand names, enhancing its market reach. The company's earnings are influenced by factors such as consumer preferences, pricing strategies, and distribution efficiency. UTZ also invests in marketing and product innovation to maintain its competitive edge and drive sales growth.

UTZ Brands Financial Statement Overview

Summary

UTZ Brands shows strong revenue growth and operational efficiency, though challenges in net income volatility and free cash flow variability remain. The company's balanced capital structure supports financial stability.

Income Statement

UTZ Brands shows solid revenue growth from 2021 to 2024, with a significant increase in total revenue over the years. The gross profit margin has remained stable, reflecting efficient cost management. However, net profit margins have been inconsistent, with occasional losses, indicating potential challenges in controlling operating expenses or fluctuating input costs. The EBIT margin has improved, suggesting better core operational efficiency.

Balance Sheet

The company maintains a reasonable debt-to-equity ratio, showing a balance between debt and equity financing. Return on equity has been volatile due to fluctuating net income, affecting the overall profitability from an equity holder's perspective. The equity ratio is healthy, indicating a strong capital structure with a significant portion of assets financed by equity.

Cash Flow

Operating cash flow has consistently supported the company's operations, although free cash flow growth has been inconsistent. The company shows a strong operating cash flow to net income ratio, highlighting effective cash generation from operations. The inconsistency in free cash flow suggests potential variability in capital expenditures or operational cash generation.

Breakdown
Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Mar 2023	Mar 2022	Mar 2021
Income Statement		Total Revenue
1.41B	1.44B	1.41B	1.18B	768.23M
	Gross Profit
494.78M	456.49M	449.06M	383.91M	253.80M
	EBIT
58.91M	16.02M	5.34M	10.57M	38.75M
	EBITDA
182.12M	100.80M	93.27M	131.52M	-16.07M
	Net Income Common Stockholders
15.97M	-24.94M	-14.04M	8.00M	-16.17M
Balance Sheet		Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments
56.14M	52.02M	72.93M	41.90M	46.83M
	Total Assets
2.73B	2.75B	2.84B	2.72B	2.58B
	Total Debt
38.00M	985.34M	944.74M	876.63M	812.05M
	Net Debt
-18.14M	933.32M	871.80M	834.73M	765.22M
	Total Liabilities
1.34B	1.36B	1.39B	1.28B	1.06B
	Stockholders Equity
702.45M	669.50M	703.15M	679.71M	602.26M
Cash Flow		Free Cash Flow
7.53M	20.92M	-39.77M	14.89M	8.00M
	Operating Cash Flow
106.17M	76.64M	48.19M	48.39M	27.99M
	Investing Cash Flow
74.96M	-48.49M	-76.07M	-136.10M	-115.88M
	Financing Cash Flow
-177.01M	-49.05M	58.91M	82.78M	96.03M

UTZ Brands Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Negative
• Last Price: 13.20
• 50DMA: Negative
• 100DMA: Negative
• 200DMA: Negative
• MACD: Negative
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Negative

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For UTZ, the sentiment is Negative. The current price of 13.2 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 13.57, below the 50-day MA of 13.57, and below the 200-day MA of 15.58, indicating a bearish trend. The MACD of 0.08 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 61.21 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 80.73 is Negative, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Negative sentiment for UTZ.

UTZ Brands Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
NOMD	78 Outperform	$2.94B	12.59	8.75%	3.24%	1.88%	24.81%
UTZ	67 Neutral	$1.87B	70.59	2.33%	1.80%	-2.01%	―
JBSS	67 Neutral	$783.71M	16.17	15.40%	1.26%	12.09%	-27.64%
JJSF	64 Neutral	$2.62B	31.04	9.08%	2.29%	2.14%	5.38%
Sector *	63 Neutral	$20.85B	14.17	-16.36%	3.22%	1.30%	4.55%
THS	58 Neutral	$1.17B	42.82	1.67%	―	-4.59%	-42.81%
BGS	55 Neutral	$492.24M	―	-36.94%	12.22%	-6.30%	-258.92%

UTZ Brands Corporate Events

Utz Brands Reports Strong 2024 Financial Results

Utz Brands reported financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2024, with net sales of $341.0 million for the quarter and $1,409.3 million for the year, showing a slight increase in organic net sales and significant growth in adjusted earnings metrics. Despite a net sales decrease in the fourth quarter due to brand divestitures, the company achieved notable profit margin expansions and a turnaround to net income from a previous loss, driven by productivity initiatives and favorable sales volume/mix. Looking ahead to 2025, Utz anticipates continued growth in organic net sales and adjusted earnings, supported by strategic investments and cost-saving measures, while positioning itself to meet or exceed its fiscal 2026 financial goals.