Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Increases Stock Position in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) by 19.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 688,115 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 113,823 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.13% of Hormel Foods worth $21,579,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HRL. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Hormel Foods during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Hormel Foods during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Hormel Foods during the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its position in Hormel Foods by 86.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,484 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 690 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in Hormel Foods by 91.8% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,523 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 729 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 40.99% of the company's stock.

Hormel Foods Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:HRL traded down $0.68 on Friday, hitting $30.76. 4,262,147 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,538,100. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $29.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.31. Hormel Foods Co. has a 12 month low of $27.59 and a 12 month high of $36.86.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be given 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 3.77%. Hormel Foods's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 84.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HRL. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $31.00 target price on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays raised shares of Hormel Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One analyst has 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $31.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hormel Foods news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total value of $136,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 95,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,902,835.20. This represents a 4.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

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.