Wellington Management Group LLP Boosts Stake in Pilgrim's Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC - Free Report) by 81.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 65,588 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 29,505 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP's holdings in Pilgrim's Pride were worth $2,977,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PPC. Ruffer LLP bought a new stake in Pilgrim's Pride during the 4th quarter valued at about $8,381,000. Advisors Preferred LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pilgrim's Pride during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,601,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,377,236 shares of the company's stock valued at $62,513,000 after purchasing an additional 180,164 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Pilgrim's Pride in the fourth quarter worth approximately $7,835,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in Pilgrim's Pride during the 4th quarter worth $3,317,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 16.64% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on PPC shares. Santander began coverage on shares of Pilgrim's Pride in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Pilgrim's Pride from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.33.

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Pilgrim's Pride Stock Down 0.0 %

NASDAQ PPC traded down $0.01 on Wednesday, hitting $53.28. The stock had a trading volume of 627,889 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,115,402. The business's fifty day moving average price is $52.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.46. The stock has a market cap of $12.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 1.31. Pilgrim's Pride Co. has a 52-week low of $33.67 and a 52-week high of $57.16.

Pilgrim's Pride Increases Dividend

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

Pilgrim's Pride Profile

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.