Investors Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG)

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) was the target of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock traders acquired 99,242 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 905% compared to the typical volume of 9,873 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Conagra Brands from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, December 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Conagra Brands from $19.00 to $18.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Conagra Brands from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Conagra Brands presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $18.71.

Insider Transactions at Conagra Brands

In other Conagra Brands news, SVP Melissa C. Napier sold 13,011 shares of Conagra Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.19, for a total value of $223,659.09. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Conagra Brands

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CAG. Quaker Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 202.3% in the second quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,227 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 2,427 shares during the last quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC bought a new position in Conagra Brands in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 844.4% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,596 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,427 shares during the period. MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 249.0% in the third quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,724 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.75% of the company’s stock.

Conagra Brands Price Performance

CAG stock opened at $17.96 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $8.59 billion, a PE ratio of -81.61 and a beta of -0.01. Conagra Brands has a 12 month low of $15.96 and a 12 month high of $28.51. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $17.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $18.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, December 19th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.01. Conagra Brands had a negative net margin of 0.87% and a positive return on equity of 10.59%. The company had revenue of $2.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.70 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Conagra Brands has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.700-1.85 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Conagra Brands will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 27th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.8%. Conagra Brands’s payout ratio is presently -636.36%.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc is a leading packaged foods company based in Chicago, Illinois, with a broad portfolio of shelf-stable, frozen and refrigerated foods marketed under familiar brands. The company develops, produces and distributes a wide range of consumer food products, serving both retail grocery and foodservice channels. Conagra’s product lineup includes frozen entrees, snacks, condiments, baking goods and desserts, providing convenient meal solutions for consumers across North America and select international markets.

Among its well-known brands are Birds Eye, Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, Marie Callender’s and Banquet in the frozen foods category, as well as Hunt’s sauces, Orville Redenbacher’s popcorn, Slim Jim meat snacks and Reddi-wip toppings.