Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd Buys 22,911 Shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd grew its position in shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) by 217.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 33,469 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 22,911 shares during the quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd's holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $1,050,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of HRL. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Hormel Foods by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,241,219 shares of the company's stock worth $1,168,257,000 after buying an additional 268,328 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,068,102 shares of the company's stock valued at $794,659,000 after purchasing an additional 617,308 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,461,100 shares of the company's stock valued at $233,459,000 after purchasing an additional 98,442 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Hormel Foods during the fourth quarter worth approximately $102,598,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Hormel Foods by 67.1% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,926,668 shares of the company's stock worth $91,810,000 after purchasing an additional 1,175,087 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.99% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $31.00 target price on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One research analyst has 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hormel Foods presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $31.80.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HRL traded up $0.60 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $30.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 946,829 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,562,829. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $29.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.31. Hormel Foods Co. has a one year low of $27.59 and a one 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.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.85%. Hormel Foods's dividend payout ratio is currently 84.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total transaction of $136,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 95,488 shares in the company, valued at $2,902,835.20. The trade was a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.