Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) Price Target Raised to $36.00

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) had its target price lifted by Barclays from $35.00 to $36.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Stephens initiated coverage on Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $31.00 price objective for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on Hormel Foods in a research note on Monday, October 21st. They set an “underperform” rating and a $28.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hormel Foods presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.17.

Hormel Foods Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of HRL stock opened at $30.90 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $16.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.26. Hormel Foods has a 1 year low of $28.51 and a 1 year high of $36.86. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.46.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last released its earnings results 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 net margin of 6.75% and a return on equity of 10.95%. The company had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Hormel Foods will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 13th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 13th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.75%. This is an increase from Hormel Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio is currently 79.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Steven J. Lykken bought 4,904 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $32.47 per share, with a total value of $159,232.88. Following the acquisition, the vice president now owns 7,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $230,537. This represents a 223.32 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hormel Foods

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Hormel Foods during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Hormel Foods in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 516.9% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 1,132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 3rd quarter worth $47,000. 40.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hormel Foods Company 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.