Acadian Asset Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) by 786.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,239 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,084 shares during the quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $311,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Hormel Foods by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 154,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,959,000 after buying an additional 11,026 shares in the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. ADV purchased a new position in Hormel Foods during the fourth quarter worth about $1,021,000. Nomura Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Hormel Foods by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 31,967 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,026,000 after buying an additional 1,443 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Hormel Foods in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,694,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,583,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,963,000 after acquiring an additional 196,460 shares during the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hormel Foods Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of Hormel Foods stock opened at $32.13 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $32.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $32.95. The stock has a market cap of $17.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.25. Hormel Foods Co. has a twelve month low of $28.51 and a twelve month high of $39.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 4th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 6.52% and a return on equity of 11.03%. The business’s revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.40 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hormel Foods

In other news, EVP Deanna T. Brady sold 51,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.95, for a total transaction of $1,648,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 72,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,313,850.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, EVP Deanna T. Brady sold 51,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.95, for a total value of $1,648,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 72,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,313,850.95. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.70, for a total value of $327,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 39,050 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,276,935. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.69% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Hormel Foods Company Profile

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.