Korea Investment CORP Raises Stake in The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB)

Korea Investment CORP boosted its position in The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB - Free Report) by 415.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 157,950 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 127,334 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned approximately 0.05% of Campbell Soup worth $6,615,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Campbell Soup by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,625,605 shares of the company's stock valued at $989,440,000 after buying an additional 447,203 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 3.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,048,679 shares of the company's stock valued at $491,581,000 after purchasing an additional 298,203 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of Campbell Soup by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 9,247,213 shares of the company's stock worth $387,273,000 after buying an additional 531,281 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Campbell Soup by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,265,615 shares of the company's stock worth $256,827,000 after purchasing an additional 322,951 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Campbell Soup by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,237,992 shares of the company's stock valued at $177,487,000 after acquiring an additional 199,470 shares in the last quarter. 52.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Campbell Soup Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of CPB stock traded down $0.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $39.03. 2,494,373 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,371,351. The Campbell Soup Company has a 52-week low of $36.92 and a 52-week high of $52.81. The stock's fifty day moving average is $39.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The stock has a market cap of $11.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.19.

Campbell Soup (NASDAQ:CPB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 5th. The company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. Campbell Soup had a net margin of 5.57% and a return on equity of 23.79%. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.74 billion. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that The Campbell Soup Company will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

Campbell Soup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Campbell Soup's payout ratio is 90.17%.

Insider Activity at Campbell Soup

In other Campbell Soup news, EVP Charles A. Brawley III sold 2,498 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.03, for a total transaction of $99,994.94. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 37,590 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,504,727.70. This trade represents a 6.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 20.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America lowered their price target on Campbell Soup from $45.00 to $41.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Campbell Soup from $51.00 to $44.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Campbell Soup from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $48.00 to $37.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Campbell Soup from $49.00 to $46.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Campbell Soup from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $44.86.

Campbell Soup Company Profile

Campbell Soup Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets food and beverage products in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Meals & Beverages and Snacks segments. The Meals & Beverages segment engages in the retail and foodservice businesses in the United States and Canada.