Van ECK Associates Corp Buys 531,281 Shares of The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB)

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB - Free Report) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,247,213 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 531,281 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned approximately 3.10% of Campbell Soup worth $387,273,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in Campbell Soup in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Campbell Soup in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Kentucky Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Campbell Soup in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Quent Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 77.7% in the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,100 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 481 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Campbell Soup in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.35% of the company's stock.

Campbell Soup Stock Down 0.0 %

CPB stock traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $38.60. The company had a trading volume of 2,270,851 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,935,339. The Campbell Soup Company has a 1 year low of $36.92 and a 1 year high of $52.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The company has a market capitalization of $11.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.09, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a 50 day moving average of $40.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $45.19.

Campbell Soup (NASDAQ:CPB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.02. Campbell Soup had a net margin of 5.57% and a return on equity of 23.79%. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Campbell Soup Company will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Campbell Soup Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This is an increase from Campbell Soup's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.04%. Campbell Soup's dividend payout ratio is 85.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Campbell Soup

In other Campbell Soup news, EVP Anthony Sanzio sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total value of $83,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,551 shares of the company's stock, valued at $693,486.90. This represents a 10.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 20.19% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $51.00 price objective on shares of Campbell Soup in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Piper Sandler raised shares of Campbell Soup from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the company from $47.00 to $56.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Campbell Soup in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Campbell Soup from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Campbell Soup currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $50.17.

Campbell Soup 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.