Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) Shares Sold by Intech Investment Management LLC

Intech Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 176,965 shares of the company's stock after selling 20,688 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC's holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $5,610,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of HRL. Blair William & Co. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods in the first quarter valued at $220,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Hormel Foods by 25.3% in the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 31,838 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,111,000 after buying an additional 6,422 shares during the period. Natixis lifted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 42.9% during the 1st quarter. Natixis now owns 30,825 shares of the company's stock worth $1,075,000 after acquiring an additional 9,248 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 44.1% in the first quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 164,626 shares of the company's stock worth $5,744,000 after acquiring an additional 50,421 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in Hormel Foods by 62.9% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 582,446 shares of the company's stock worth $20,322,000 after purchasing an additional 224,978 shares during the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price objective 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. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Hormel Foods in a report on Monday, October 21st. They set an "underperform" rating and a $28.00 target price for the company. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $31.00 price target on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $31.29.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HRL opened at $30.67 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $16.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.60, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.26. Hormel Foods Co. has a one year low of $28.51 and a one year high of $36.86. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $31.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 2.29.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, September 4th. The company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.95 billion. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 6.52% and a return on equity of 11.03%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.40 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th were paid a dividend of $0.282 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $1.13 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.68%. Hormel Foods's dividend payout ratio is presently 79.58%.

Insider Transactions at Hormel Foods

In other news, VP Steven J. Lykken sold 9,800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.91, for a total transaction of $312,718.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 30,589 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $976,094.99. This trade represents a 24.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Deanna T. Brady sold 51,600 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.95, for a total value of $1,648,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 72,421 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,313,850.95. The trade was a 41.61 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 71,400 shares of company stock valued at $2,288,338. 0.69% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.