Brokerages Set Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) PT at $32.33

Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the six analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $32.17.

A number of research firms have weighed in on HRL. Citigroup raised shares of Hormel Foods from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $33.00 to $37.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Stephens assumed coverage on Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $31.00 price target on the stock.

Insider Activity at Hormel Foods

In other Hormel Foods news, EVP Deanna T. Brady sold 51,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.95, for a total transaction of $1,648,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 72,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,313,850.95. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Deanna T. Brady sold 51,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.95, for a total transaction of $1,648,620.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 72,421 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,313,850.95. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Steven J. Lykken sold 9,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.91, for a total transaction of $312,718.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 30,589 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $976,094.99. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 71,400 shares of company stock valued at $2,288,338. 0.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hormel Foods

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HRL. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 97.8% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,900,989 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,151,000 after acquiring an additional 1,434,437 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 86.4% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,602,732 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,867,000 after purchasing an additional 742,859 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Hormel Foods by 24.0% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,976,257 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,738,000 after purchasing an additional 575,378 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in Hormel Foods by 9.9% during the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 5,638,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $196,729,000 after purchasing an additional 505,942 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Hormel Foods by 59.1% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,244,448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,470,000 after purchasing an additional 462,283 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

NYSE HRL opened at $31.07 on Wednesday. Hormel Foods has a 12-month low of $28.51 and a 12-month high of $37.24. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $32.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.70. The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.25.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 4th. The company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.01. Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 6.52%. The company had revenue of $2.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.95 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Hormel Foods will post 1.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be given a dividend of $0.282 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $1.13 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.71%.

About Hormel Foods

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.