Hamel Associates Inc. Makes New Investment in The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB)

Hamel Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 77,515 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,246,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Campbell Soup by 3.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,048,679 shares of the company's stock worth $491,581,000 after buying an additional 298,203 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Campbell Soup by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 9,247,213 shares of the company's stock worth $387,273,000 after acquiring an additional 531,281 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 6.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,265,615 shares of the company's stock valued at $256,827,000 after purchasing an additional 322,951 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Campbell Soup by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,237,992 shares of the company's stock valued at $177,487,000 after purchasing an additional 199,470 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Campbell Soup by 1,593.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,904,440 shares of the company's stock worth $91,623,000 after purchasing an additional 1,792,005 shares during the last quarter. 52.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Insider Activity at Campbell Soup

In related news, EVP Anthony Sanzio sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total transaction of $83,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,551 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $693,486.90. This trade represents a 10.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 20.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on CPB shares. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Campbell Soup from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. BNP Paribas raised Campbell Soup to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Campbell Soup from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Campbell Soup from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Campbell Soup from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Campbell Soup has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $49.38.

Campbell Soup Price Performance

Shares of CPB traded down $1.15 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $39.18. 7,638,398 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,568,284. The Campbell Soup Company has a 12 month low of $36.92 and a 12 month high of $52.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The stock has a market cap of $11.68 billion, a PE ratio of 21.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.19. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $39.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.43.

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

Campbell Soup Announces Dividend

The company 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 is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.98%. Campbell Soup's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.25%.

Campbell Soup Profile

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.