Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 17,030,000 shares, a decline of 6.9% from the July 15th total of 18,290,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 4,080,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.2 days. Currently, 3.6% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on CAG shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Conagra Brands from $34.00 to $33.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.45.

Conagra Brands Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE CAG opened at $31.09 on Tuesday. Conagra Brands has a 1 year low of $25.16 and a 1 year high of $31.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $29.32 and a 200 day moving average of $29.40. The stock has a market cap of $14.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.32.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 11th. The company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.93 billion. Conagra Brands had a return on equity of 14.31% and a net margin of 2.88%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.62 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Conagra Brands will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 1st will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.50%. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 191.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Conagra Brands

In other news, EVP Charisse Brock sold 15,444 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.37, for a total value of $469,034.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 113,254 shares in the company, valued at $3,439,523.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, COO Thomas M. Mcgough sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.29, for a total transaction of $1,211,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 161,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,890,108.47. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Charisse Brock sold 15,444 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.37, for a total transaction of $469,034.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 113,254 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,439,523.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Conagra Brands

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Conagra Brands in the fourth quarter worth approximately $828,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lifted its position in Conagra Brands by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 1,304,775 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,395,000 after acquiring an additional 36,057 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in Conagra Brands by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 42,016 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,204,000 after purchasing an additional 2,528 shares during the last quarter. abrdn plc increased its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 215,059 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,164,000 after purchasing an additional 30,915 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 36.7% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 25,251 shares of the company’s stock worth $724,000 after purchasing an additional 6,774 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.75% of the company’s stock.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels.