Fruth Investment Management Has $1.37 Million Holdings in Conagra Brands $CAG

Fruth Investment Management boosted its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) by 81.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 87,100 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 39,100 shares during the period. Fruth Investment Management’s holdings in Conagra Brands were worth $1,369,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAG. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 23,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $628,000 after purchasing an additional 954 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association bought a new stake in Conagra Brands during the 1st quarter worth approximately $225,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Conagra Brands by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 36,356 shares of the company’s stock worth $970,000 after buying an additional 2,038 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP lifted its stake in Conagra Brands by 40.7% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 40,326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,075,000 after buying an additional 11,664 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its stake in Conagra Brands by 3.9% in the second quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 50,450 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,033,000 after buying an additional 1,900 shares in the last quarter. 83.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Conagra Brands Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE:CAG opened at $14.06 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $13.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.30. Conagra Brands has a one year low of $12.53 and a one year high of $21.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.73 billion, a PE ratio of -140.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of -0.85 and a beta of -0.02.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 1st. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.01). Conagra Brands had a negative net margin of 0.39% and a positive return on equity of 10.15%. The company had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.76 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. Conagra Brands’s revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Conagra Brands will post 1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently -1,400.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CAG shares. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Conagra Brands from $16.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Conagra Brands from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Conagra Brands from $17.00 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $12.00 price objective (down from $16.00) on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Conagra Brands from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $14.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Conagra Brands

In other news, Director Richard H. Lenny bought 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $14.34 per share, for a total transaction of $358,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 229,340 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,288,735.60. This represents a 12.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John J. Mulligan purchased 17,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $14.31 per share, for a total transaction of $250,425.00. Following the completion of 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 company insiders.

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.