Analysts Set Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) PT at $31.17

Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the six research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation, one has issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $31.17.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on HRL shares. Barclays upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Monday, October 21st. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hormel Foods news, VP Steven J. Lykken bought 4,904 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $32.47 per share, with a total value of $159,232.88. Following the acquisition, the vice president now owns 7,100 shares in the company, valued at $230,537. This trade represents a 223.32 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hormel Foods

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HRL. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Hormel Foods during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Hormel Foods during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Hormel Foods by 516.9% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 1,132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Hormel Foods during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

NYSE:HRL opened at $29.19 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.26. Hormel Foods has a 1 year low of $28.51 and a 1 year high of $36.86. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $31.23 and a 200-day moving average of $31.41. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.14 billion. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 6.75% and a return on equity of 10.95%. Hormel Foods’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.42 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hormel Foods will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, January 13th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.97%. This is a positive change from Hormel Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 13th. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.45%.

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.