Empowered Funds LLC Increases Position in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)

Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG - Free Report) by 328.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 34,318 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 26,314 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Conagra Brands were worth $952,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,484,277 shares of the company's stock worth $796,229,000 after buying an additional 1,691,945 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 12,285,579 shares of the company's stock worth $341,048,000 after buying an additional 618,096 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,514,152 shares of the company's stock worth $373,180,000 after buying an additional 196,100 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 21,015.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 10,654,828 shares of the company's stock worth $346,495,000 after buying an additional 10,604,367 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 6,290,625 shares of the company's stock worth $204,571,000 after buying an additional 122,590 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.75% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on CAG shares. Citigroup cut their target price on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Conagra Brands from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Barclays decreased their target price 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 decreased their target price on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $29.00 target price on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Friday, December 20th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $29.78.

Conagra Brands Trading Up 3.9 %

CAG traded up $0.98 on Friday, hitting $25.82. The company had a trading volume of 7,589,209 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,840,252. The company has a market cap of $12.32 billion, a PE ratio of 25.31, a PEG ratio of 1.72 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 quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $26.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.54.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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. Conagra Brands had a return on equity of 13.76% and a net margin of 4.13%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.71 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.35 EPS for the current year.

Conagra Brands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 27th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 27th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.42%. Conagra Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 137.26%.

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.