Bessemer Group Inc. Buys 54,195 Shares of Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)

Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) by 237.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 76,971 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 54,195 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings in Conagra Brands were worth $2,281,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mirova boosted its stake in Conagra Brands by 333.4% in the first quarter. Mirova now owns 28,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $856,000 after buying an additional 22,218 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd boosted its stake in Conagra Brands by 573.4% in the first quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 38,046 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,128,000 after buying an additional 32,396 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Conagra Brands in the first quarter valued at about $433,000. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. boosted its stake in Conagra Brands by 9.3% in the first quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 465,632 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,801,000 after buying an additional 39,718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in Conagra Brands in the first quarter valued at about $394,000. Institutional investors own 83.75% of the company’s stock.

Conagra Brands Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE CAG traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $29.97. 857,633 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,682,931. The company has a market cap of $14.33 billion, a PE ratio of 40.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.97. Conagra Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $25.16 and a one year high of $33.55. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $29.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.26.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 11th. The company reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.93 billion. Conagra Brands had a return on equity of 14.31% and a net margin of 2.88%. Conagra Brands’s quarterly revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.62 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.61 EPS for the current year.

Conagra Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 1st will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.67%. Conagra Brands’s payout ratio is 191.78%.

Insider Activity at Conagra Brands

In other Conagra Brands news, EVP Charisse Brock sold 15,444 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.37, for a total value of $469,034.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 113,254 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,439,523.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays cut their price target on Conagra Brands from $34.00 to $33.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Conagra Brands from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Citigroup cut their price target on Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.18.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels.