Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 183,966 Shares of Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)

Franklin Resources Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG - Free Report) by 59.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 125,327 shares of the company's stock after selling 183,966 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.'s holdings in Conagra Brands were worth $4,076,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Conagra Brands in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Conagra Brands during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 82.8% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 927 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Conagra Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at about $59,000. 83.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Conagra Brands Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CAG traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $27.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,123,479 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,827,134. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.83, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.31. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $28.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.47. Conagra Brands, Inc. has a 12-month low of $26.21 and a 12-month high of $33.24.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. Conagra Brands had a net margin of 4.14% and a return on equity of 13.71%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.71 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Monday, January 27th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 27th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.07%. Conagra Brands's dividend payout ratio is 137.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on CAG shares. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Conagra Brands from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $29.00 price target on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $30.75.

Conagra Brands 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.