Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) Sets New 1-Year Low - Here's What Happened

Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $28.03 and last traded at $28.27, with a volume of 4050029 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $28.46.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on HRL. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $31.00 price objective on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays raised Hormel Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hormel Foods has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $31.17.

Hormel Foods Stock Up 2.8 %

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $30.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 period in the previous year, the business posted $0.42 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, January 13th were paid a $0.29 dividend. This is a positive change 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 3.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, January 13th. Hormel Foods's payout ratio is currently 79.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Steven J. Lykken acquired 4,904 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $32.47 per share, with a total value of $159,232.88. Following the completion of the purchase, the vice president now directly owns 7,100 shares in the company, valued at $230,537. The trade was a 223.32 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hormel Foods

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HRL. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in Hormel Foods in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Hormel Foods in the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Hormel Foods in the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Hormel Foods in the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Hormel Foods in the third quarter worth approximately $47,000. 40.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hormel Foods

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.