National Pension Service Lowers Stock Holdings in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)

National Pension Service decreased its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG - Free Report) by 76.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 275,096 shares of the company's stock after selling 885,153 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.06% of Conagra Brands worth $7,634,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in Conagra Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 65.4% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,131 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 447 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Conagra Brands during the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Conagra Brands during the fourth quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its position in Conagra Brands by 36.2% in the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 1,992 shares of the company's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 529 shares in the last quarter. 83.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays dropped their price target on Conagra Brands from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Bank of America cut their price objective on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Conagra Brands from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $29.00 price target on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Friday, December 20th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $28.67.

Conagra Brands Stock Performance

NYSE CAG traded up $0.35 during trading on Monday, hitting $25.89. 1,794,274 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,669,294. The business has a 50 day moving average of $25.98 and a 200-day moving average of $28.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.38, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.28. Conagra Brands, Inc. has a 12-month low of $23.06 and a 12-month high of $33.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.70.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.15 billion. Conagra Brands had a return on equity of 13.76% and a net margin of 4.13%. The firm's revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.71 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 27th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, January 27th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.41%. Conagra Brands's payout ratio is currently 137.25%.

About Conagra Brands

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.