Stephens Inc. AR Lowers Position in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)

Stephens Inc. AR cut its holdings in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) by 41.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,838 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,009 shares during the quarter. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Conagra Brands were worth $515,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. IRON Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Conagra Brands in the third quarter worth about $787,000. Goldstone Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Conagra Brands in the third quarter worth about $424,000. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. raised its holdings in Conagra Brands by 15.7% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 28,680 shares of the company’s stock worth $933,000 after purchasing an additional 3,884 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its holdings in Conagra Brands by 8.2% in the third quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 24,395 shares of the company’s stock worth $793,000 after purchasing an additional 1,843 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trajan Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Conagra Brands by 3.5% in the third quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC now owns 145,878 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,744,000 after purchasing an additional 4,923 shares in the last quarter. 83.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Conagra Brands Stock Performance

CAG opened at $28.90 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $30.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.21. The company has a market cap of $13.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.34. Conagra Brands, Inc. has a 52-week low of $26.62 and a 52-week high of $33.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 2nd. The company reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.84 billion. Conagra Brands had a net margin of 4.14% and a return on equity of 13.71%. Conagra Brands’s quarterly revenue was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.66 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.84%. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 135.92%.

Insider Activity at Conagra Brands

In related news, COO Thomas M. Mcgough sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.29, for a total value of $1,211,600.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 161,443 shares in the company, valued at $4,890,108.47. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Conagra Brands to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective 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. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Conagra Brands currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.63.

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.