Franklin Resources Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG - Free Report) by 17.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 103,172 shares of the company's stock after selling 22,155 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.'s holdings in Conagra Brands were worth $2,863,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CAG. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Conagra Brands by 70.1% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 73,291 shares of the company's stock worth $2,383,000 after purchasing an additional 30,215 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Conagra Brands by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 139,682 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,542,000 after acquiring an additional 1,472 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Conagra Brands by 1.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,514,152 shares of the company's stock worth $373,180,000 after purchasing an additional 196,100 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 17,707 shares of the company's stock worth $564,000 after buying an additional 2,224 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in Conagra Brands by 6.4% in the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 253,442 shares of the company's stock worth $8,242,000 after acquiring an additional 15,325 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.75% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on CAG shares. Bank of America lowered their price target on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Conagra Brands from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Conagra Brands from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays upped their price target on Conagra Brands from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $29.00 price objective on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Friday, December 20th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $27.90.

Conagra Brands Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAG traded up $0.46 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $25.36. The company had a trading volume of 2,696,835 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,113,382. The company has a fifty day moving average of $25.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $27.03. The company has a market cap of $12.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.84, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.22. Conagra Brands, Inc. has a 12-month low of $23.06 and a 12-month high of $33.24.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by ($0.01). Conagra Brands had a net margin of 4.13% and a return on equity of 13.76%. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. Conagra Brands's revenue was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 28th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.52%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 28th. Conagra Brands's payout ratio is 205.88%.

Conagra Brands Company Profile

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.