Empower Advisory Group LLC Increases Stock Position in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Empower Advisory Group LLC increased its position in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) by 4.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,038 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $315,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HRL. Creative Planning boosted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 8.2% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 120,651 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,825,000 after purchasing an additional 9,127 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Hormel Foods by 212.9% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,893 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,000 after acquiring an additional 2,649 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in Hormel Foods by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 164,216 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,206,000 after acquiring an additional 7,663 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its stake in Hormel Foods by 12.2% during the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 102,418 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,247,000 after acquiring an additional 11,170 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global X Japan Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Hormel Foods by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 13,389 shares of the company’s stock valued at $424,000 after acquiring an additional 1,315 shares during the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.17.

Hormel Foods Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:HRL opened at $28.56 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 2.32. Hormel Foods Co. has a 1-year low of $28.03 and a 1-year high of $36.86. The company’s fifty day moving average is $30.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.26.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 4th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.01). Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 10.95% and a net margin of 6.75%. The firm had revenue of $3.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.14 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.42 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, January 13th were issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.06%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, January 13th. This is a boost from Hormel Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Steven J. Lykken acquired 4,904 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $32.47 per share, with a total value of $159,232.88. Following the acquisition, the vice president now directly owns 7,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $230,537. The trade was a 223.32 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Profile

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.