Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) Shares Gap Down to $33.14

Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $33.14, but opened at $29.85. Hormel Foods shares last traded at $30.02, with a volume of 682,411 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup raised Hormel Foods from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $33.00 to $37.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $32.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Hormel Foods from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $28.00 to $29.00 in a research report on Friday, May 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hormel Foods presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.33.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $31.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $32.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $17.61 billion, a PE ratio of 22.94, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.25.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 4th. The company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $2.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 6.37% and a return on equity of 11.31%. Hormel Foods’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.40 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hormel Foods

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 688.3% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 741 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 647 shares in the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hormel Foods during the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Central Valley Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Register Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods in the first quarter valued at about $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

About Hormel Foods

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.