Fmr LLC Decreases Stock Position in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

FMR LLC trimmed its position in shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) by 25.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 68,929 shares of the company's stock after selling 23,228 shares during the quarter. FMR LLC's holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $2,185,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HRL. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Hormel Foods in the second quarter worth $34,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 516.9% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 1,132 shares in the last quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Hormel Foods during the second quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Hormel Foods in the third quarter worth about $47,000. Institutional investors own 40.99% of the company's stock.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

NYSE:HRL traded down $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $32.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,508,607 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,598,310. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $31.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $31.39. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market cap of $18.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.56, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.26. Hormel Foods Co. has a 12-month low of $28.51 and a 12-month high of $36.86.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.01). Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 10.95% and a net margin of 6.75%. The firm had revenue of $3.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.42 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 13th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 13th. This is a boost from Hormel Foods's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. Hormel Foods's dividend payout ratio is 79.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hormel Foods news, VP Steven J. Lykken sold 9,800 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.91, for a total value of $312,718.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 30,589 shares of the company's stock, valued at $976,094.99. The trade was a 24.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.70, for a total value of $327,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 39,050 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,276,935. This represents a 20.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.69% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $31.00 target price for the company. BNP Paribas started coverage on Hormel Foods in a report on Monday, October 21st. They set an "underperform" rating and a $28.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $31.29.

Hormel Foods Company 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.