Trek Financial LLC Invests $331,000 in Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

Trek Financial LLC purchased a new position in Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 7,288 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $331,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PPC. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,113,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $232,119,000 after buying an additional 33,965 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 15.1% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,377,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,513,000 after acquiring an additional 180,164 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 897,805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,761,000 after acquiring an additional 15,905 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 849,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,549,000 after acquiring an additional 21,575 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 429,440 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,492,000 after purchasing an additional 57,837 shares during the last quarter. 16.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 2nd. Santander began coverage on Pilgrim’s Pride in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Pilgrim’s Pride from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.33.

Pilgrim’s Pride Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of PPC stock opened at $49.47 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 1.31. Pilgrim’s Pride Co. has a one year low of $33.67 and a one year high of $57.16. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $51.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $49.09. The company has a market capitalization of $11.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.85 and a beta of 0.63.

Pilgrim’s Pride Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a $6.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This is a boost from Pilgrim’s Pride’s previous special dividend of $2.75.

About Pilgrim’s Pride

Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. engages in the production, processing, marketing, and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. It operates through the following segments: U.S., U.K. and Europe, and Mexico. The company was founded by Lonnie A.