BNP Paribas Financial Markets Grows Stock Position in Conagra Brands $CAG

BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 957,946 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 49,231 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Conagra Brands were worth $16,582,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 80.4% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,573 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 701 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the period. 83.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Conagra Brands from $18.00 to $14.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Conagra Brands from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Conagra Brands from $15.00 to $13.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Conagra Brands from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $14.67.

Insider Transactions at Conagra Brands

In other news, Director Richard H. Lenny bought 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $14.34 per share, for a total transaction of $358,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 229,340 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,288,735.60. This trade represents a 12.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John J. Mulligan bought 17,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $14.31 per share, for a total transaction of $250,425.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $296,617.68. This represents a 542.13% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Conagra Brands

Here are the key news stories impacting Conagra Brands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan cut its price target on Conagra Brands to $14 from $17, but that still implies modest upside from the current share price, suggesting some analysts see room for a rebound. Conagra Brands (CAG) Valuation Check After Guidance Cut And Analyst Downgrades
• Positive Sentiment: Articles highlighting high-dividend consumer staples names may support interest in Conagra as an income stock, which can help limit downside in a defensive market. Wall Street’s most accurate analysts give their take on 3 consumer staples stocks delivering high-dividend yields
• Neutral Sentiment: Some recent commentary notes that analyst sentiment on Conagra is mixed, with conflicting views rather than a clear consensus on the stock. Analysts Have Conflicting Sentiments on These Consumer Goods Companies: Conagra Brands (CAG) and Stride (LRN)
• Negative Sentiment: Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an underperform rating and cut its price target to $12 from $16, signaling concern about Conagra’s outlook after recent guidance pressure. Conagra Brands (CAG) Faces Mounting Challenges as Bernstein Cuts Rating and Price Target
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley also lowered its target to $13 from $15 and maintained an equal weight rating, adding to the wave of cautious analyst revisions. Morgan Stanley Adjusts Conagra Brands Price Target to 13 From 15

Conagra Brands Stock Up 2.7%

CAG opened at $13.03 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $14.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.90. Conagra Brands has a one year low of $12.53 and a one year high of $22.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -130.24 and a beta of -0.02.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.01). Conagra Brands had a positive return on equity of 10.15% and a negative net margin of 0.39%.The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Conagra Brands will post 1.7 EPS for the current year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.7%. Conagra Brands’s payout ratio is -1,400.00%.

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.