Bleakley Financial Group LLC Acquires New Stake in Hormel Foods Corporation $HRL

Bleakley Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 20,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $454,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HRL. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 8,967 shares of the company’s stock worth $213,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 55,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,308,000 after buying an additional 437 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 15,477 shares of the company’s stock valued at $367,000 after buying an additional 440 shares during the last quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. now owns 25,944 shares of the company’s stock valued at $615,000 after buying an additional 441 shares during the period. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Hormel Foods by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 8,583 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

Hormel Foods stock opened at $25.40 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $23.49 and a 200-day moving average of $23.28. Hormel Foods Corporation has a 52-week low of $19.70 and a 52-week high of $29.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.88, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.34.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.05. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 3.82% and a return on equity of 9.74%. The business had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.35 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Hormel Foods Corporation will post 1.5 EPS for the current year.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 13th will be given a $0.2925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 13th. This represents a $1.17 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio is presently 137.65%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hormel Foods

In other news, Director Gary C. Bhojwani sold 20,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.51, for a total value of $495,102.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 32,002 shares in the company, valued at approximately $784,369.02. This trade represents a 38.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on HRL. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $25.00 price target on Hormel Foods in a report on Thursday, May 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $23.00 target price (down from $28.00) on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane increased their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.14.

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.