Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) Reaches New 52-Week Low - Here's What Happened

Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $28.27 and last traded at $28.43, with a volume of 299706 shares. The stock had previously closed at $28.53.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on HRL shares. Barclays raised shares of Hormel Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Hormel Foods in a research report on Monday, October 21st. They set an "underperform" rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $31.17.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $30.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.26.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report) last announced 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). The company had revenue of $3.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.14 billion. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 6.75% and a return on equity of 10.95%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.42 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 13th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.08%. This is an increase from Hormel Foods's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Hormel Foods's dividend payout ratio is currently 79.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Steven J. Lykken acquired 4,904 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $32.47 per share, for a total transaction of $159,232.88. Following the acquisition, the vice president now directly owns 7,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at $230,537. This represents a 223.32 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of HRL. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Hormel Foods by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 6,072,682 shares of the company's stock valued at $190,500,000 after purchasing an additional 413,669 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 71.9% during the fourth quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 19,177 shares of the company's stock worth $602,000 after purchasing an additional 8,021 shares during the period. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. acquired a new stake in Hormel Foods during the 4th quarter worth about $135,000. Man Group plc raised its holdings in Hormel Foods by 186.0% during the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 1,041,356 shares of the company's stock worth $32,667,000 after buying an additional 677,194 shares during the period. Finally, Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 41,552 shares of the company's stock worth $1,323,000 after buying an additional 625 shares during the period. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.