First Trust Advisors LP Sells 164,217 Shares of The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB)

First Trust Advisors LP trimmed its stake in shares of The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB) by 11.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,216,233 shares of the company’s stock after selling 164,217 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Campbell Soup were worth $50,936,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Passumpsic Savings Bank acquired a new stake in Campbell Soup during the third quarter worth about $221,000. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in shares of Campbell Soup during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $183,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Campbell Soup during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $240,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Campbell Soup in the third quarter valued at approximately $216,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in Campbell Soup by 304.4% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 26,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,317,000 after purchasing an additional 20,268 shares in the last quarter. 52.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Charles A. Brawley III sold 2,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.03, for a total transaction of $99,994.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 37,590 shares in the company, valued at $1,504,727.70. The trade was a 6.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 20.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CPB has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Campbell Soup in a report on Monday, March 24th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Campbell Soup from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of Campbell Soup from $46.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Campbell Soup from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Campbell Soup from $43.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $44.86.

Campbell Soup Stock Performance

Shares of CPB stock opened at $37.88 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The Campbell Soup Company has a one year low of $36.02 and a one year high of $52.81. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $39.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.30 billion, a PE ratio of 20.70, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.19.

Campbell Soup (NASDAQ:CPB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 5th. The company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.74 billion. Campbell Soup had a net margin of 5.57% and a return on equity of 23.79%. Campbell Soup’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Campbell Soup Company will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Campbell Soup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.12%. Campbell Soup’s payout ratio is 90.17%.

Campbell Soup Company Profile

Campbell Soup Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets food and beverage products in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Meals & Beverages and Snacks segments. The Meals & Beverages segment engages in the retail and foodservice businesses in the United States and Canada.