Mariner LLC Boosts Holdings in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Mariner LLC grew its stake in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) by 19.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 65,956 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,889 shares during the quarter. Mariner LLC's holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $2,069,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of HRL. MML Investors Services LLC raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 9,108 shares of the company's stock valued at $289,000 after buying an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its holdings in Hormel Foods by 47.5% in the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,981 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 638 shares during the period. Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the third quarter worth approximately $1,060,000. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $222,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Hormel Foods by 3.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 50,526 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,578,000 after buying an additional 1,651 shares during the period. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Hormel Foods

In other Hormel Foods news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total transaction of $136,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 95,488 shares in the company, valued at $2,902,835.20. The trade was a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.72% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on HRL. Stephens restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $31.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America raised Hormel Foods from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $29.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $32.33.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

Hormel Foods stock traded down $0.51 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $29.68. The stock had a trading volume of 2,381,978 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,587,646. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.32 billion, a PE ratio of 20.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.31. 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's 50-day moving average price is $29.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.47. Hormel Foods Co. has a 12 month low of $27.59 and a 12 month high of $36.86.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.91%. Hormel Foods's dividend payout ratio is currently 84.67%.

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.