Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.36 EPS

Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.36, Briefing.com reports. Pilgrim's Pride had a net margin of 4.25% and a return on equity of 25.06%. The company had revenue of $4.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.58 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Pilgrim's Pride Trading Up 1.6 %

Pilgrim's Pride stock traded up $0.75 during trading on Thursday, reaching $48.44. The company had a trading volume of 1,822,534 shares, compared to its average volume of 898,536. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.51, a PEG ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 0.82. Pilgrim's Pride has a 12-month low of $25.11 and a 12-month high of $50.14. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $44.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $40.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Pilgrim's Pride news, CEO Fabio Sandri sold 65,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.50, for a total transaction of $2,892,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 279,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,440,642.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Matthew R. Galvanoni sold 6,500 shares of Pilgrim's Pride stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.31, for a total transaction of $281,515.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 51,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,241,292.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Fabio Sandri sold 65,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.50, for a total value of $2,892,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 279,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,440,642.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 82.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PPC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays upped their target price on Pilgrim's Pride from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Stephens assumed coverage on Pilgrim's Pride in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $43.00 price objective on the stock. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Pilgrim's Pride from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $46.00 price target on shares of Pilgrim's Pride in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of Pilgrim's Pride from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $47.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Pilgrim's Pride presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $45.33.

Pilgrim's Pride Company Profile

Pilgrim's Pride Corporation produces, processes, markets, and distributes fresh, frozen, and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. The company offers fresh products, including refrigerated whole or cut-up chicken, selected chicken parts that are either marinated or non-marinated, primary pork cuts, added value pork, and pork ribs; and prepared products, which include fully cooked, ready-to-cook and individually frozen chicken parts, strips, nuggets and patties, processed sausages, bacon, smoked meat, gammon joints, pre-packed meats, sandwich and deli counter meats and meat balls.