Sterling Capital Management LLC Increases Stake in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)

Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG - Free Report) by 55.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 28,245 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 10,077 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in Conagra Brands were worth $784,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Conagra Brands during the fourth quarter worth about $168,877,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $110,704,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,161,355 shares of the company's stock valued at $309,728,000 after buying an additional 1,745,319 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Conagra Brands by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 58,798,952 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,631,671,000 after buying an additional 1,132,839 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC grew its stake in Conagra Brands by 114.5% in the 4th quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 1,927,141 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,478,000 after buying an additional 1,028,631 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.75% of the company's stock.

Conagra Brands Stock Up 0.4 %

CAG traded up $0.09 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $25.48. The stock had a trading volume of 4,469,546 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,128,620. Conagra Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $23.06 and a one year high of $33.24. The company has a market capitalization of $12.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock's 50 day moving average is $25.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.86.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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). The business had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.92 billion. Conagra Brands had a net margin of 4.13% and a return on equity of 13.76%. The company's revenue was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Investors of record on Monday, April 28th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 28th. Conagra Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 205.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CAG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Conagra Brands from $29.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Conagra Brands in a research report on Monday, March 24th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $27.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Conagra Brands from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays increased their target price on Conagra Brands from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Conagra Brands from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $33.00 to $26.00 in a report on Monday, February 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Conagra Brands currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $27.90.

Conagra Brands Company Profile

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.