Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Has $24.49 Million Holdings in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) by 12.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 780,732 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 86,685 shares during the quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned about 0.14% of Hormel Foods worth $24,492,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Hormel Foods by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,241,219 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,168,257,000 after buying an additional 268,328 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Hormel Foods by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,843,207 shares of the company's stock worth $246,041,000 after acquiring an additional 533,657 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Hormel Foods by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,461,100 shares of the company's stock valued at $233,459,000 after purchasing an additional 98,442 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Hormel Foods in the 4th quarter valued at $102,598,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 67.1% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,926,668 shares of the company's stock valued at $91,810,000 after buying an additional 1,175,087 shares during the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on HRL shares. Barclays upgraded Hormel Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America raised shares of Hormel Foods from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $29.00 to $35.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $32.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total value of $136,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 95,488 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,902,835.20. This trade represents a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HRL traded up $0.34 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $30.74. 2,322,703 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,582,884. Hormel Foods Co. has a twelve month low of $27.59 and a twelve month high of $36.86. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $29.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 2.32. The company has a market cap of $16.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.06, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.31.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. Hormel Foods's dividend payout ratio is currently 84.67%.

Hormel Foods Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.