Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Smithfield Foods currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $28.90.

Smithfield Foods Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of Smithfield Foods stock opened at $24.88 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $23.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.18. Smithfield Foods has a 1-year low of $18.43 and a 1-year high of $26.07. The company has a market cap of $9.78 billion and a P/E ratio of 11.21.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SFD. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Smithfield Foods by 1,029.5% during the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 172,420 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,057,000 after purchasing an additional 157,155 shares during the last quarter. Fourth Sail Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Smithfield Foods during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $18,424,000. Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Smithfield Foods in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $419,000. ING Groep NV boosted its stake in shares of Smithfield Foods by 54.1% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 329,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,737,000 after buying an additional 115,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its holdings in shares of Smithfield Foods by 18.8% in the third quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 345,468 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,102,000 after acquiring an additional 54,734 shares in the last quarter.

Smithfield Foods Company Profile

Smithfield Foods, Inc (NASDAQ: SFD) is one of the world’s largest pork processors and hog producers. Founded in 1936 in Smithfield, Virginia, the company has grown from a regional ham producer into a fully integrated food company offering a broad range of fresh pork, value-added meats and prepared foods. Its product portfolio includes bacon, ham, sausage, ribs and deli meats marketed under well-known brands such as Smithfield®, Nathan’s Famous® and Eckrich®.

Smithfield operates a network of hog production facilities, processing plants and distribution centers across the United States, Europe and Latin America.