Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) Short Interest Up 9.9% in January

Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 15,950,000 shares, an increase of 9.9% from the December 31st total of 14,510,000 shares. Approximately 3.4% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 4,850,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.3 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Conagra Brands

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAG. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 82.8% during the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Conagra Brands during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 65.4% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 447 shares during the period. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Conagra Brands during the third quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Conagra Brands during the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. 83.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Conagra Brands Stock Performance

Shares of CAG opened at $25.48 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $26.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.02. Conagra Brands has a 12-month low of $25.06 and a 12-month high of $33.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.16 billion, a PE ratio of 24.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. Conagra Brands had a return on equity of 13.76% and a net margin of 4.13%. The firm had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.15 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.71 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Conagra Brands will post 2.46 EPS for the current year.

Conagra Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 27th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.50%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 27th. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 137.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on CAG shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Conagra Brands from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $29.00 target price on shares of Conagra Brands in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Barclays reduced their target price on Conagra Brands from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Citigroup reduced their target price on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.33.

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.