Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the seven ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have issued a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $38.20.

Several research firms have commented on PPC. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 15th. Barclays raised shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $42.00 in a report on Friday, May 1st. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $44.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price Performance

NASDAQ:PPC opened at $27.58 on Thursday. Pilgrim’s Pride has a one year low of $27.13 and a one year high of $50.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market cap of $6.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.39 and a beta of 0.28. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $32.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.31.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.18). Pilgrim’s Pride had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 28.57%. The business had revenue of $4.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. Pilgrim’s Pride’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Pilgrim’s Pride will post 3.52 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Pilgrim’s Pride

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strategic Investment Advisors MI purchased a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride during the first quarter worth $437,000. South Dakota Investment Council boosted its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 68.7% during the first quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 111,201 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,199,000 after buying an additional 45,300 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 16.7% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 52,407 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,979,000 after buying an additional 7,504 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 17.0% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 76,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,888,000 after buying an additional 11,121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 134.4% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 112,126 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,234,000 after acquiring an additional 64,292 shares during the period. 16.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Pilgrim’s Pride

Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation is a leading poultry producer in the United States and Mexico and a wholly owned subsidiary of JBS SA Headquartered in Greeley, Colorado, and Pittsburg, Texas, the company specializes in the production, processing and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken products. Pilgrim’s Pride serves a diverse customer base that includes retail grocery chains, foodservice distributors and restaurant operators across North America and in select international markets.

The company’s vertically integrated operations encompass breeding, hatching, feed milling, processing plants and cold storage facilities.