Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) Upgraded at Barclays

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Barclays from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. BNP Paribas began coverage on Hormel Foods in a report on Monday, October 21st. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $28.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on Hormel Foods in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $31.00 price objective for the company. Two equities 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $31.17.

Hormel Foods Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of Hormel Foods stock traded up $0.46 on Wednesday, hitting $30.81. 986,977 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,361,116. Hormel Foods has a 52 week low of $28.51 and a 52 week high of $36.86. The company has a market cap of $16.91 billion, a PE ratio of 21.06, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.26. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $31.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $31.46. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report) last posted 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.42 EPS. Hormel Foods's quarterly revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Hormel Foods will post 1.67 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Steven J. Lykken acquired 4,904 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $32.47 per share, with a total value of $159,232.88. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Hormel Foods

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HRL. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 202.4% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 94,599 shares of the company's stock worth $2,884,000 after purchasing an additional 63,313 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 24.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,976,257 shares of the company's stock valued at $90,738,000 after buying an additional 575,378 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 14.9% in the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 7,238 shares of the company's stock valued at $221,000 after buying an additional 937 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 81.0% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 36,665 shares of the company's stock worth $1,118,000 after buying an additional 16,409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in Hormel Foods by 23.7% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 260,674 shares of the company's stock worth $7,947,000 after acquiring an additional 49,995 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.99% of the company's stock.

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.