Norges Bank Acquires Shares of 6,085,648 Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 6,085,648 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $168,877,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.27% of Conagra Brands as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Conagra Brands by 65.4% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,131 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 447 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 84,534 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,346,000 after buying an additional 501 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. increased its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 65,680 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,823,000 after buying an additional 505 shares during the period. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Conagra Brands by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,644 shares of the company's stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its position in Conagra Brands by 36.2% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 1,992 shares of the company's stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 529 shares during the period. 83.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on CAG shares. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Monday, March 24th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $27.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Conagra Brands from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $33.00 to $26.00 in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.20.

Conagra Brands Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of Conagra Brands stock traded down $0.07 during trading on Friday, reaching $26.71. 11,256,666 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,078,496. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.75 billion, a PE ratio of 26.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.18. Conagra Brands, Inc. has a 1-year low of $23.06 and a 1-year high of $33.24. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $25.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 3rd. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by ($0.01). Conagra Brands had a return on equity of 13.76% and a net margin of 4.13%. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.69 EPS. Conagra Brands's revenue for the quarter was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Investors of record on Monday, April 28th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.24%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 28th. Conagra Brands's payout ratio is currently 137.25%.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels.