Stephens Cuts Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) Price Target to $25.00

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) had its price objective decreased by Stephens from $27.00 to $25.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. Stephens currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on HRL. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $26.00 price objective (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Friday, December 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $27.00 price target on Hormel Foods and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Hormel Foods from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Bank of America upped their target price on Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Barclays set a $30.00 target price on shares of Hormel Foods and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.43.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

Shares of HRL opened at $23.78 on Wednesday. Hormel Foods has a fifty-two week low of $21.03 and a fifty-two week high of $32.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.08 billion, a PE ratio of 27.33, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.33. The company’s 50-day moving average is $24.05 and its 200-day moving average is $24.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 1.20.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, December 3rd. The company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.02. Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 9.41% and a net margin of 3.95%.The company had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Hormel Foods will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, January 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.2925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 12th. This is an increase from Hormel Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.17 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.9%. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is presently 134.48%.

Institutional Trading of Hormel Foods

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. GoalVest Advisory LLC bought a new position in Hormel Foods in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in Hormel Foods in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Caldwell Trust Co bought a new position in Hormel Foods in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Federated Hermes Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in Hormel Foods by 354.7% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,314 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 1,025 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation is a global branded foods company primarily engaged in the production, marketing and distribution of value-added, high-quality meat and food products. The company’s portfolio spans a range of categories including refrigerated and frozen meats, pantry staples, specialty foods and shelf-stable items. Through manufacturing facilities located across North America and international markets, Hormel Foods supplies retail grocers, foodservice operators, convenience stores and e-commerce platforms.

Among its best-known brands, Hormel Foods produces SPAM® canned meats, Jennie-O® turkey products, Skippy® peanut butter and Applegate® natural and organic meats.