The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB) Shares Sold by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its holdings in shares of The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB - Free Report) by 13.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,656,162 shares of the company's stock after selling 248,278 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.56% of Campbell Soup worth $69,360,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in shares of Campbell Soup by 161.8% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 186,277 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,801,000 after acquiring an additional 115,122 shares during the period. ING Groep NV acquired a new position in Campbell Soup during the fourth quarter worth about $1,062,000. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 133.3% during the 4th quarter. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. now owns 147,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,156,000 after acquiring an additional 84,000 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Campbell Soup by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,787,481 shares of the company's stock worth $74,860,000 after acquiring an additional 21,849 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its position in Campbell Soup by 34.2% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 165,494 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,096,000 after purchasing an additional 42,216 shares during the period. 52.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CPB. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Campbell Soup from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Bank of America cut their price target on Campbell Soup from $45.00 to $41.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Campbell Soup from $51.00 to $44.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Campbell Soup from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $48.00 to $37.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Consumer Edge restated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Campbell Soup in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $44.86.

Campbell Soup Stock Performance

NASDAQ CPB traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $38.03. 818,102 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,726,630. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.91. The business's 50 day moving average is $39.12 and its 200-day moving average is $42.50. The company has a market capitalization of $11.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.19. The Campbell Soup Company has a 1 year low of $36.92 and a 1 year high of $52.81.

Campbell Soup (NASDAQ:CPB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 5th. The company reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. Campbell Soup had a net margin of 5.57% and a return on equity of 23.79%. The firm had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.74 billion. The firm's revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Campbell Soup Company will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Campbell Soup Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.10%. Campbell Soup's dividend payout ratio is presently 90.17%.

Insider Activity at Campbell Soup

In other news, EVP Charles A. Brawley III sold 2,498 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.03, for a total transaction of $99,994.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 37,590 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,504,727.70. This represents a 6.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 20.19% of the company's stock.

About Campbell Soup

Campbell Soup Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets food and beverage products in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Meals & Beverages and Snacks segments. The Meals & Beverages segment engages in the retail and foodservice businesses in the United States and Canada.