Vanguard Group Inc. Buys 33,965 Shares of Pilgrim's Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC - Free Report) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,113,888 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 33,965 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 2.16% of Pilgrim's Pride worth $232,119,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PPC. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 21,860 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,007,000 after purchasing an additional 780 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Pilgrim's Pride by 295.8% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 946 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Pilgrim's Pride by 8.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 36,083 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,662,000 after buying an additional 2,682 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its stake in Pilgrim's Pride by 1.0% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 61,311 shares of the company's stock worth $2,820,000 after buying an additional 598 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zacks Investment Management acquired a new stake in shares of Pilgrim's Pride during the third quarter worth approximately $4,989,000. 16.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Pilgrim's Pride Trading Up 2.3 %

NASDAQ:PPC traded up $1.16 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $51.53. The stock had a trading volume of 1,101,147 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,108,305. The business's 50 day moving average is $51.96 and its 200-day moving average is $49.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 2.01. The company has a market cap of $12.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.30 and a beta of 0.63. Pilgrim's Pride Co. has a one year low of $33.67 and a one year high of $57.16.

Pilgrim's Pride Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a dividend of $6.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This is a positive change from Pilgrim's Pride's previous special dividend of $2.75.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PPC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Santander assumed coverage on Pilgrim's Pride in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Pilgrim's Pride from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Pilgrim's Pride from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, March 2nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pilgrim's Pride has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.33.

About Pilgrim's Pride

Pilgrim's Pride Corp. engages in the production, processing, marketing, and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. It operates through the following segments: U.S., U.K. and Europe, and Mexico. The company was founded by Lonnie A.