Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) Declares $0.35 Quarterly Dividend

Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, October 1st, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a dividend of 0.35 per share on Wednesday, November 27th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st.

Conagra Brands has raised its dividend payment by an average of 14.2% annually over the last three years. Conagra Brands has a dividend payout ratio of 51.9% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Conagra Brands to earn $2.70 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.40 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 51.9%.

Conagra Brands Stock Performance

Shares of CAG stock traded down $2.64 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $30.08. The stock had a trading volume of 19,814,158 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,779,607. The business's fifty day moving average is $31.29 and its 200-day moving average is $30.26. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market cap of $14.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.21, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.32. Conagra Brands has a 1-year low of $25.16 and a 1-year high of $33.24.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 11th. The company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.04. Conagra Brands had a return on equity of 14.31% and a net margin of 2.88%. The firm had revenue of $2.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.62 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Conagra Brands will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Conagra Brands in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $36.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays lowered their price target on Conagra Brands from $34.00 to $33.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Conagra Brands from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $31.10.

Insider Buying and Selling at Conagra Brands

In other Conagra Brands news, COO Thomas M. Mcgough sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.29, for a total transaction of $1,211,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 161,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,890,108.47. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

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.