Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFD) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFD) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $30.8750.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on SFD shares. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Smithfield Foods from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings raised Smithfield Foods from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered Smithfield Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Zacks Research cut Smithfield Foods from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 25th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Smithfield Foods from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th.

Institutional Trading of Smithfield Foods

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SFD. Fortress Investment Group LLC raised its position in Smithfield Foods by 110.3% in the 3rd quarter. Fortress Investment Group LLC now owns 201,055 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,721,000 after buying an additional 105,464 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in Smithfield Foods by 47.4% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,023,625 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,858,000 after acquiring an additional 329,187 shares in the last quarter. Game Creek Capital LP acquired a new position in Smithfield Foods during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,849,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Smithfield Foods during the 4th quarter worth approximately $595,000. Finally, MASO CAPITAL PARTNERS Ltd bought a new position in shares of Smithfield Foods during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,882,000.

Smithfield Foods Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SFD opened at $24.58 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $9.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.60 and a beta of -0.41. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $25.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 2.41. Smithfield Foods has a 52-week low of $21.08 and a 52-week high of $29.81.

Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $3.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. Smithfield Foods had a net margin of 6.48% and a return on equity of 15.54%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.58 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Smithfield Foods will post 2.75 EPS for the current year.

Smithfield Foods Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th were given a $0.3125 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $1.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.1%. Smithfield Foods’s payout ratio is currently 48.83%.

About Smithfield Foods

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.