Teacher Retirement System of Texas Buys 50,208 Shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (NYSE:FDP)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its position in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (NYSE:FDP - Free Report) by 23.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 267,665 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 50,208 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned 0.56% of Fresh Del Monte Produce worth $8,889,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 1.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,306,527 shares of the company's stock worth $38,595,000 after acquiring an additional 15,278 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,522,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,105,353 shares of the company's stock worth $36,709,000 after purchasing an additional 44,777 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 773,116 shares of the company's stock worth $22,842,000 after buying an additional 2,767 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 25.5% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 437,998 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,938,000 after buying an additional 88,900 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.83% of the company's stock.

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Insider Transactions at Fresh Del Monte Produce

In other news, COO Mohammed Abbas sold 5,064 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.42, for a total transaction of $154,046.88. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 45,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,385,935.20. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Ziad Nabulsi sold 1,725 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.42, for a total value of $52,474.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 11,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at $349,769.16. This trade represents a 13.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 9,321 shares of company stock worth $283,545. 30.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Fresh Del Monte Produce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Stock Up 2.9 %

Shares of NYSE:FDP traded up $0.86 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $30.44. The company had a trading volume of 508,465 shares, compared to its average volume of 280,732. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The business's 50 day moving average price is $30.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.21. The stock has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a PE ratio of 92.25 and a beta of 0.33. Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. has a 1-year low of $21.23 and a 1-year high of $35.27.

Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE:FDP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.14 billion. Fresh Del Monte Produce had a net margin of 0.36% and a return on equity of 5.91%. The business's revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.25 EPS.

Fresh Del Monte Produce declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Monday, February 24th that allows the company to repurchase $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 10.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This is a positive change from Fresh Del Monte Produce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.94%. Fresh Del Monte Produce's dividend payout ratio is currently 40.40%.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Company Profile

Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc, through its subsidiaries, produces, markets, and distributes fresh and fresh-cut fruits and vegetables in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Fresh and Value-Added Products, Banana, and Other Products and Services.