KLCM Advisors Inc. Takes $2.42 Million Position in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)

KLCM Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 87,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,415,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAG. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 35.8% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 5,214 shares of the company’s stock valued at $132,000 after acquiring an additional 1,375 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 112.2% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 3,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 1,732 shares during the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its holdings in Conagra Brands by 35.0% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 319,444 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,865,000 after purchasing an additional 82,732 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in Conagra Brands by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 388,055 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,769,000 after purchasing an additional 20,461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Conagra Brands in the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000. 83.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Conagra Brands Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CAG opened at $25.31 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.70. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.71. Conagra Brands, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $24.18 and a fifty-two week high of $33.24. The company has a market capitalization of $12.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.28.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.02. Conagra Brands had a return on equity of 13.76% and a net margin of 4.13%. The business had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.15 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.71 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Monday, January 27th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.53%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 27th. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 137.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Conagra Brands from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Conagra Brands from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Conagra Brands presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.33.

Conagra Brands Company Profile

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.